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  Dec 24 2021

Christmas: Celebrating the Birth of Our Savior

Christmas: Celebrating the Birth of Our Savior or is Christmas Pagan?

By Biblestudycompany.com Ric Joyner

Frustration mounts as we approach this time of year in the Christmas season. Screams of "Christmas is pagan" escalate into a crescendo with arguments against Christmas on social media and by some bible teachers. Could this be a veiled attack on the Gospel in the name of "we don't want to be idolators"?

Let's take a look. Will you please reread these scriptures prayerfully as we begin our biblical study?

Matthew Chapters 1-2 highlights

  • Jesus Christ's genealogy to be the King of Israel
  • Angel's perspective on why Joseph should marry Mary.
  • Many prophecies were fulfilled. The time for Messiah is here.
  • Why did God's Son come? "To save the people from their sins." Paul defined the Gospel in 1 Cor 15:1-4. The Pharisees interpreted scripture that the Messiah would come and rescue Israel from Rome. The real problem was the sin of Adam which infected us, and God planned to fix sin and death. God dealt with the eternal consequences for both Jew and Gentile. We don't want to miss this distinction.  
  • His name announced is, "God with us." How interesting! Because in Judaism at this time (second temple), a man could rise to become the Messiah (the Lord's anointed) but not be "God with us" in the form of a man. Simeon's prophecy in Luke 2:25-35 expresses the Gospel to us. The Gospel begins here at the birth of Christ.

"30 For my eyes have seen Your salvation, 31 Which You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, 32 A LIGHT OF REVELATION TO THE GENTILES, And the glory of Your people Israel."

Luke Chapters 1 and 2. Pay attention to what the angels say a couple of times: "good news," translated as the same word… Gospel. The birth of Christ is indeed good news for Jews because their long-awaited Messiah was finally here, and prophecy was fulfilled. We sit writing this paper 2,000 years later for gentiles, grateful that the apostles preached the Gospel to us: Good news that Christ came as a child to break the back of sin and death and allowed us gentiles an eternal "home" and become children of God! Gentiles are not part of the nation of Israel, but we are part of God's family! (Eph Chap 1-4)

We celebrate the birth of Christ because of the Gospel!

Read John 1 for a view from heaven of why Christ came.

9 There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him. 11  He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. 12 But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, 13  who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 14 And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us. We saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John testified about Him and cried out, saying, "This was He of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has a higher rank than I, for He existed before me.'" 16 For of His fullness we have all received, and grace upon grace. 17 For the Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. 18  No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.

Is Christmas pagan?

If it is, then are you a pagan for celebrating the day of Christ's birth. The historical proof that Christmas is pagan is thrown at you with overwhelming emotional authoritarianism. Is the emotionalism based on biblical truth? How about historical facts? We know the origin of Christmas (birth of Christ) is biblical. The story of our Savior starts with His birth because the prophets mentioned He was coming. We suspect the anti-Christmas vehemence is agenda-driven. We ask this question because born-again believing Christians are not worshipping pagan deities by participation in the birth of Christ called Christmas today. I spoke to a Torah Keeping brother who said, "Yes, Christmas is pagan." I asked how that could be, and he shared, "that when you put a present under the tree, you are 'bowing' down to the tree." I was stunned. The logic he displayed defied logic. Yeah, no. Worshipping a pagan deity requires one to engage the diety knowingly.

In our research, there were pagan celebrations that started around the time of 274 AD, but they appear to be in response to Christians in Rome celebrating the birth of Christ! We then ask the question, what came first, the "chicken or the egg?"

"However, it has also been argued that, on the contrary, Emperor Aurelian, who in 274 instituted the holiday of the Dies Natalis Solis Invicti, did so partly as an attempt to give a pagan significance to a date already important for Christians in Rome.[76]

Is the nearness of a pagan holiday make Christmas pagan? When I sift through the concerns of 'Christmas is pagan,' people, did you know that there was a pagan holiday at this time? We will deal with this later, but does that make celebrating the birth of Christ pagan today? Let's ask another question: Is Hanukkah pagan? The answer is no. Yet, Hanukkah is square in the middle of this pagan holiday called Saturnalia. The true church pushed hard against these wicked holidays, and to assume born-again believers were participating in pagan festivals doesn't make much sense since Christians had to live outside of society for several hundred years because of severe persecution.

Calling Christmas pagan because of the nearness of the same period of a pagan holiday would be the same as calling Easter (the resurrection of Christ) and Passover pagan. The proximity does not work because a pagan spring festival may happen around the same time.

We can confidently say that born-again believers would not have observed a pagan holiday and dishonored our Lord Jesus Christ, who rescued us from sin and death. Born again believers do not participate in pagan rituals today, and Christmas is about the birth of Christ.

When was the birth of Christ?

  • According to Luke, the shepherds were in the fields with their sheep, which some scholars say can happen twice per year. Here are some clues.
    • No crops would be in the fields because sheep can devastate crops: Winter is likely due to cold and rain and is free of crops but can be miserable. According to Luke, the shepherds were staying in the fields. However, shepherds could still be in the fields during winter with good tents. I will link a video below of William Federer's excellent research, which I found just after writing this piece, which shows the shepherds were out most of the year because the shepherds were raising sheep for the temple sacrifices. 
    • Another time the shepherds may be in the fields is early summer after the wheat harvest, which is late April to  June.
    • The Roman Caesar may not call for a worldwide census in the winter, thus making travel difficult.  
    • Dr. Baruch Korman of loveisrael.org indicates a definite break between verses in the Greek language in Luke 1:26. That "in the sixth month" of the Jewish year, the angel Gabriel visited Mary. He has a video and believes the time of the Lord's birth is at the beginning of the summer. Baruch's view is that the sixth month of the Jewish year. He says that the 6th month is Elul and that Jesus was born in the month of Sivan. Here is his video. Judaism has two "firsts of the year" with different focuses; thus, there are two sixth months, Adar and Elul.
    • Our research from Jewish sites shows that the sixth month of the Jewish calendar is Adar, which corresponds to February and March of our calendar. This may be why early Christians thought December to early January was the date of birth of our Lord. 
    • However, the plain reading of scripture in Luke 1:26 and beyond is the text's focus on the sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy. The contextual reading is focused on Mary's pregnancy also. The conclusion may be why scholars say "we don't know" the date of birth of Christ. Dr. Daniel Goepfrich of Theology is for Everyone confirmed my study on this matter. And this makes sense since the whole concept is not about a date but about a Who! 
    • Before 400 AD and after, many early Christians viewed March 25 as Christ's conception date (in the month of Adar), and thus nine months later was December 25. Is December 25 the actual date? Not sure, but are we focused on dates or the birth of Christ? Some anti-Christmas people concentrate on the dates because pagan holidays appeared around those dates in December. Thus, they need to link the celebration of Christmas with pagan holidays to bolster their claims that Christmas is pagan and call you a pagan for celebrating Christmas.
  • Are "near" dates of pagan holidays worshiping the return of the sun synonymous with the birth of Christ? No. Why? Because we are not pagans and we are not celebrating pagan deities, we are celebrating the birth of Christ, and neither were the early Christians.

Conclusion. We will focus on the birth of Christ currently and not conflate the past to today. 

"Certainly today, the mix of consumerism (AKA Santa Claus) can take people's eyes off of Christ, but our job is to bring them back to the salvation message of the Gospel. Will you join us?"

 

Christmas is a Roman Catholic tradition and is celebrated around the pagan holiday of Saturnalia; thus, Christmas is pagan.

Note: In our extensive research, we stumbled upon a Wikipedia article. We usually would bypass Wikipedia as higher education frowns on the use of Wikipedia; however, this article has stood the test of time (2001) is updated continually, even in 2021. Once you dive into the article, you will see the extent and expanse of the research on Christmas. Those who are "anti-Christmas" will find information to support their premises. 

"Got you Biblestudycompany…see Christmas is pagan". Well, no, and not so fast. This Wikipedia article is excellent on Christmas and is thorough for a balanced perspective.

Here are some highlights:

  1. What does the name Christmas mean? For example, we celebrate the birth of Christ, and that is our focus. However, some people insist on focusing on Christmas as a Roman Catholic tradition. From this article is the definition of the origins of the name Christmas:

"Christmas" is a shortened form of "Christ's mass." The word was recorded as Crīstesmæsse in 1038 and Cristes-messe in 1131.[22] Crīst (genitive Crīstes) is from Greek Khrīstos (Χριστός), a translation of Hebrew Māšîaḥ (מָשִׁיחַ), "Messiah," meaning "anointed";[23][24] and mæsse is from Latin missa, the celebration of the Eucharist.[25]”

  1. Christians celebrated the birth of Christ long before the Roman Catholic Church formally began. The first few hundred years after Christ, the Christians did not celebrate birthdays of any kind, and thus, the logic goes, would not have celebrated Christ's birth. The first record is from Saint Augustine.

"December 25 was the date of the winter solstice in the Roman calendar.[16][53] A late fourth-century sermon by Saint Augustine explains why this was a fitting day to celebrate Christ's nativity: "Hence it is that He was born on the day which is the shortest in our earthly reckoning and from which subsequent days begin to increase in length. He, therefore, who bent low and lifted us chose the shortest day, yet the one whence light begins to increase." [54]

We conclude by the historical facts that the Roman Catholic Church was not in existence at the time of the beginnings of Christian recognition of the birth of Christ.

  1. When was the Roman Catholic Church founded? Why do we ask? One argument against Christmas is that Christmas is Roman Catholic, and our research shows this is incorrect. Several sources agree with this website.

"The Roman Emperor Constantine established himself as the head of the church around 313 A.D., which made this new "Christianity" the Roman Empire's official religion. The first actual Pope in Rome was probably Leo I (440-461 A.D.), although some claim that Gregory I was the first (Pope) (590-604 A.D.). This ungodly system eventually ushered in the darkest period of history known to man, called the "Dark Ages" (500-1500 A.D.). Through popes, bishops, and priests, Satan ruled Europe, and Biblical Christianity became illegal."

Conclusion: Catholicism was not the leading purveyor of Christmas traditions.

  1. A thorough reading of the Wikipedia article, which is well-sourced, shows many conflicting beginnings for Christmas celebrations. A prominent theme in the report is the worldwide trajectory of celebrations of Christmas. Today, the traditions hobbled and wobbled through history, and today are celebrated in their current form. We marvel at the sticking power of the Gospel contained in the birth of Christ to a predominantly gentile world. Is this God ordained for the opportunity to share the Gospel for the church? We think so. Or are some who focus on getting people not to celebrate the birth of Christ missing an opportunity for the Gospel? Yes.
  2. Atheist countries tried to "stomp" out Christmas. The current attacks by believers on Christmas, as pagan, remind us of the atheist countries. We wonder about the agenda of those who attack the Christmas celebration, and we think there is an anti-church and anti-Gospel sentiment buried within.
  3. What about the "Christmas tree is pagan"? No. Some will point to Jeremiah 10 as proof of Christmas trees as pagan. However, a contextual reading of scripture shows this is false, and one must "read into" the scripture that the Christmas tree is pagan. Besides, the Christmas tree is relatively recent in history in its current form. We are serious about interpreting scripture correctly and opposed to any scripture twisting.
  4. Are we celebrating a pagan holiday today? No. Regardless of historical narratives by anti-Christmas, anti-birth of Christ people, they are not presenting the history correctly. The nearness of the celebration of the birth of Christ to ancient pagan holidays has no bearing on our celebration today.
  5. What about the mistletoe, yule log, etc. didn't the pagans use them? But what about today? Are they used to worship deities? No. Valentine's day was a horrible pagan festival, and the Christians turned it into a day of romance worldwide. Believe me; if I find a mistletoe and my wife is under it, she will get kissed!
  6. Could the celebration of Christmas give us the one-month opportunity each year to share the Good News of Jesus Christ and what He has done for all of humanity? By the entire world's focus on Christ at this time of the year be a gift from God for the Gospel? We think so. Certainly today, the mix of consumerism (AKA Santa Claus) can take people's eyes off of Christ, but our job is to bring them back to the salvation message of the Gospel. Will you join us?
  7. William Federer's video has an excellent history of Christmas traditions, from ancient times to today.

  8. Celebrating birthdays is pagan. No. Many ancient cultures did not celebrate birthdays, but many did. And no, celebrating birthdays is not pagan. We are honoring a person. Where are the deities?

Christmas is not a biblical holiday.

"And therefore, we should not celebrate the birth of Christ." To that, we would say, "tell that to the angels engaging the shepherds because heaven celebrated the birth of God's Son!" Luke 2:2-14

"And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terribly frightened. 10 But the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all the people; 11 for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. 12 "This will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger." 13 And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying, 14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased."

Note: the words Good News are translated from Greek

Original word: εὐαγγελίζω
Transliteration: euaggelizó
Definition (short): preach
Definition (full): to announce good news

Yep, evangelize during Christmas. There are hurting hearts at this time of the year, and many blindly celebrate a holiday not connected to Christ's birth. Let us help people relate it to Christ, our Savior.

If not Christmas, what should we celebrate instead? Some would say that we should celebrate Hanukkah to return to our Jewish roots. Hanukkah was not part of the Gospel, and the birth of Christ IS part of the Gospel.

We encourage everyone everywhere to ask God whether one should participate in the celebration of the birth of Christ. We say YES! We can confidently push back on anti-Christmas and anti-birth of Christ people with correct historical and biblical facts.

Worldwide focus on Christ

During this time of the year, people are open to the Gospel for nearly one month. Do we let this opportunity slide through our fingers? In Matthew 28, our commission is to go and make disciples. To make a disciple, we must present the Gospel first. Will we waste our time arguing over the birth of Christ, whether it is pagan or not? To this, we say that people who are saying Christmas or the celebration of the birth of Christ is pagan are avoiding the Gospel! Why? Who in the spiritual realm attacks the Gospel and wants it destroyed? Satan. Think about this tidbit. Imagine a worldwide focus on Christmas, even in Buddhist countries? Why not present the Gospel at this time of the year? As Paul said, his focus was on getting people reconciled to God. (2Cor 5:18-21)

 God promised by the first prophecy in Genesis 3:15 that a Savior would come:

"15 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."

The Accuser is bound and determined to use people, even with good intentions, to stop the message of the Gospel of Salvation. We use the word accusation intentionally because people who celebrate traditional Christmas are called pagans. A severe charge but fortunately untrue.

God is a God of prophecy. He wants us to know what is coming. He answered His word and has "healing in His wings" to "reconcile us to God." There are no other holy books that contain prophetic words fulfilled!

Let's celebrate the Birth of Christ and spread the Gospel this season!

We think every Christmas season is a literal miracle that this holiday (holy day) is focused worldwide on Jesus Christ, our Savior. Even the Wikipedia article acknowledges this undeniable fact.

Let us turn aside from the poor handling of scripture and agenda-driven history "facts" and focus on the birth of Christ and sharing the Good news of His coming to rescue us from our sin, thus giving us eternal life without works and fear; in the blood of Christ!

What can you and your family do to share the love of Christ with a hurting world this Christmas season? Here is one video that touches our hearts when we watch it.

Feel free to share the resources.

Bibliography

Melton, James. "The Plain Truth about the Roman Catholic Church." biblebelievers.com. Bible Baptist Publications, 1998. https://biblebelievers.com/jmelton/Catholic.html.

Wikipedia Contributors. "Christmas." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, October 31, 2001. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas.

———. "Christmas." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, October 31, 2001. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas

 

Sources for further research

William Federer: There Really is a Santa Claus - History of Saint Nicholas & Christmas Holiday Traditions
by Amazon.com Learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0965355748/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_QVM4MJF835RK35KMWAHR

Christmas has nothing to do with paganism: Red pen logic 

Was December 25th the date of Christ's birth? The Greek Orthodox church thinks so. 

Mike Winger on Christmas:

1. Is Christmas PAGAN? In defense of Christmas

2. Debunking Christmas Myths

3. Stop Twisting Jeremiah 10 Because It's Not About Christmas Trees

Alisa Childers on Christmas

For the extensive history of Christmas with the discussion of the dates for the birth of Christ

God Became Incarnate James Quiggle by Amazon.com
Learn more: https://www.amazon.com/dp/149918669X/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_AR6NEZ6XB0TPZ5N1VB90

 

 

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Jesus Christmas Torah Keeping torah observant Posted by Ric and Mary Joyner
  Jul 31 2021

Video Course on how to study the Bible and other resources

Playlist  of videos that will go step by step

Article  On how to study the Bible from BSC step by step

Article by Dr. Baruch on how to study the Bible

Article on how numbers play a role in Bible Study

Blog article and podcast on how we learned to study the Bible with Dr. Baruch

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Bible Study Posted by Ric and Mary Joyner
  Aug 16 2020

Bible Study Exodus 32 Part 3b The cure for deception

Bible Study: Part 2 of the cure for deception. It is not an accident we can become deceived. By understanding Exodus 32 patterns we can begin to see how we can understand and analyze sermons. 

We ask this question: What is the cure? We need a new perspective. Get into the word ourselves. But how? By being careful with God’s word to know it. By choosing to do so we are honoring God. DO NOT DEPEND ON PEOPLE.  

We contrast Adam and Eve's decision not to believe God's word and they chose to disobey and the golden calf. Rebellion or I WANT is at the heart of deception.  

Can you be deceived?  

Yes. But how?

  • Study the garden pattern
  • Study how Satan fell (Ezekiel and Isaiah)
  • Study the golden calf. About the making of a false religion
  • Study the bible yourself. Renewing of your mind

Don’t give people authority over you. Books pastors etc.  

Where are your "I wants"? Are they aligned with God's will? And what is the "crowd" you are running in or with doing? Be cautious to not go with the flow.  

So what is the cure for deception?

  • Honesty
  • Listen to God’s word and submit your heart to it. (your will)

Matthew 6:12-13 Ask God to go into your heart and reveal your motives and sin. 12 'And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. 13 And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’  

Eph 4 "as a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming;"

Join us for this podcast and please share. 

MP3 DOWNLOAD ONLY

 

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  Aug 10 2020

Bible Study: Exodus 32 Part 3a The Cure for Deception

 

MP3 DOWNLOAD AUDIO ONLY

The Cure for Deception Exodus 32 Part 3a is for us to be in the Word of God ourselves and know how to study the bible. Watch out for the "I wants"!

Please note that there are two parts to this one! This is part A.

•We have completed two podcasts so far on Exodus 32. Can you be deceived is part P1 from Exodus 32 and lessons from the golden calf.  P2 was Real or Fake Prophecy, Which is It?

•We are adding a 3rd.   P3 is The Cure for Deception

•A problem is we don't believe we can be deceived. Would our favorite teacher deceive us? In rare circumstances. But what if they themselves are deceived? How would we know?

•What is the "Sunday School Myth"?  

• Please understand that we can be deceived. Because of this principle: I want… It is either "I want" or God's will. Christ came to do the "will of my Father". Will we?

•What is the cure for deception? A new perspective. Get into the Word of God ourselves TO BE PLEASING TO GOD. Be careful with God's word. DO NOT DEPEND ON PEOPLE.

•We want to answer several questions today

•1. How can we put all the tools together so we can practice not being deceived? We could list all the scripture where there is a possibility

•2. What if you hear a teaching, and it sounds good? It feels good? We may even say, "I know in my spirit it is right" teaching. Is this an objective truth? No. What would be your objective way to analyze it? That's what we are discussing.

•3. Can you be willing NOT to believe what you have been taught for years and go on a search for God's perspective?

•4. 1John 2:26 Says the Holy Spirit anoints us because of what Christ has done to save us. He will teach you. 

So here are some "I wants" to keep in mind. 

  1. Does it feed our flesh?  Do I want to attend a church that is "hip" and cool"?
  2. Does it feed our soul (emotions)? Do I want to feel good when I leave a church or hear teaching?
  3. Does it take our eyes off of Christ? Do I want to go my own way?
  4. Does it make us compare ourselves to others? Do I want what they have?
  5. Does it take our eyes off the Word of God? I want others to study for me.
  6. Does it put us "under" the authority of men? I want others to tell me what to do because it is easier than submitting to Christ?

Join us for this podcast and video to submit our hearts to our God and King, the Lord Jesus Christ. We welcome your feedback. 

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  Jul 31 2020

Our First Bible Study: What is Blessing? We all want it? But what is it?

We are having a Bible Study on What is Blessing?

We all want it. But what is it?

We all want health, wealth, and happiness. Right? Is being blessed a better job? More money? Healing? Notice that this definition is about us…getting what we want. The Lord Jesus Christ came to do the "Will of My Father." Our will or His Will? I want…or What He wants?

Grab a beverage (this is not to insinuate alcohol) and now read Deuteronomy 28, the full chapter. I will wait. (tapping fingers but not impatiently. Your eyes will light up)

Notice the first two verses. Read them again.

1 "Now it shall be, if you diligently obey the LORD your God, being careful to do all His commandments which I command you today, the LORD, your God, will set you high above all the nations of the earth. 2 "All these blessings will come upon you and overtake you if you obey the LORD your God: Now continue to read to vs. 15.

Let's do some observations:

1. Notice the conditions? Diligently obey, and careful to do… "all His commandments…" (the Word of God) THEN you are blessed.

2. Blessed are you in most areas of your life where you have influence. Can you do God's Will at work, at home, in your personal life? We are called to do just that. We live so short lives here on earth and then are headed to eternity. Does it matter how we live our lives on the earth? Youbetcha! As we say in Wisconsin. We only get one shot at this life. How will we respond to God? I want? Or what He wants?

3. Lest people think this is legalism to obey the Bible (His Word), let us remember the words of Christ to His disciples. "If you love me, you will obey my commandments." Let this sink in: IF YOU LOVE ME. YOU WILL OBEY. HMMM. That is a game-changer. "Hey BSC, my church says I am no longer under the law?". How will you know what sin is if you don't know the bible and what the law has to say? How will you know you are offending God? Did you know the law shows us our sin? And it shows us God's righteous character? How will you get to know God personally if you don't know His character? He sent the Holy Spirit to help us. see 1John 2:26-

Did you know you cannot keep the law? No one could. But He can help us if we ask. Yeah, let that sink in. Why? Because Grace is the power to change to God's will, in our opinion. Besides, think about this: John 14:15 is one of the verses that show us He is telling His disciples that HE IS GOD (they are His commandments because He wrote them!) And without the Holy Spirit's help, we cannot obey.

Now go read Titus 2:11-12 because this is the definition of grace. Waiting. Grace is Christ coming to save us and then empowering (blessing us) to be taught AWAY from ungodliness. What is ungodliness? What is evil? Evil is anything outside of God's will. Now ask yourself questions.

Back to Deut 28. The first 15 verses discuss the blessings. I showed this to my daughter, and she looked at me and said, "Dad, the Lord is doing the work!". I said, "I knowwwwww! And I don't think we were designed by Him to live in this world without His help. Do we want to live our lives in our own strength?

But please read the curses now, which is the next part of this chapter. He wants us to be fruitful, and the curses section is about people who reject His commandments (His Word), to do their will, and are now on their own. Curses should bring us to the fear of the Lord. As we read the curses how should we respond? How can we ask God to help us to obey? Did you notice that perhaps there was some pushback in your heart to obey His word? That is the war that goes on that Paul spoke of in Romans 7. Go read that too. How can you ask Him to help you? Hint. Read Romans 12.

We can conclude that for us to be blessed, God's purpose is for us to carry out His will which is revealed in His Word. So, it is about Him and His Will. Not about you or what ministry you will have. Just serve Him right where you are. How should we respond to God to live a praiseworthy life? Perhaps we can drop to our knees and ask for His help to obey His will, and His word BEFORE WE ASK FOR HIS HELP FOR OUR NEEDS.

To finish our bible study today, here are new testament promises about the blessing from God, which is Matthew 6: "Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? 27 "And who of you by being worried can add a single hour to his life? 28 "And why are you worried about clothing? Observe how the lilies of the field grow; they do not toil nor do they spin 29 yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory clothed himself like one of these. 30 "But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! 31 "Do not worry then, saying, 'What will we eat?' or 'What will we drink?' or 'What will we wear for clothing?' 32 "For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33 "But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. 34 "So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.

Notice vs 33. Yep. Seek first the Kingdom of God. Have you lost your first love? The one in revelations? What if it isn't emotionalism but actually that we stop putting the Lord Jesus Christ, first in every area of our life? Can we repent and ask for His rulership in all areas of our life?

If you are like us, and struggled to know how to study the bible to live a praiseworthy life to God, our blog has many resources and tools. Your life will never be the same. https://biblestudycompany.com/blog

Love to know your feedback. Share, please.

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bible study blessing Gods word Posted by Ric and Mary Joyner
  Jul 18 2020

Bible Study: Real Prophecy or False Prophecy: Which is it?

Last week our podcast/video was on Can You Be Deceived? This week we are asking the question: Real Prophecy or False Prophecy? Which is it?   Notice that in Exodus 32, Aaron was in charge of the Hebrews in the wilderness while Moses was on the mountain. He gave into the people and became a FALSE PROPHET. 

So what about today? Let's start by asking some questions.  The first question we will ask is who and what are we giving our time and listening to?   Are you listening to false prophecy? For example, Graham Cooke and Russ Walden start their prophecies with "The Father says", and then include way too many nonsensical adjectives to have any meaning or relevance beyond a guess application to our life, aka these prophecies are similar to horoscopes. Yep, I said it=horoscopes. Seriously, we need to ask ourselves why these people all sound the same, even using the same adjectives? Notice how they are adjectives strung together with no real meaning, and anyone reading the "false prophecy" can fit the profile. Here is an example from Graham Cooke's Lattitude and Indulgence:
"Latitude is the Lord releasing to you a new liberty. For you to explore and extend a new found freedom to be with the Father. The Holy Spirit is going to work with you to develop an ability and an authority that is authentic in your life; for you to come into a new place, a whole new dimension of spirituality and to enable others to press in to that same place. The Lord says to you, there is a fresh season of favor upon each one of you, to go into a deeper place in the Lord." Notice the use of adjectives that literally do not say anything descriptive. Prophetic utterances like this are nowhere in the Bible.  

Sad really.   But let us ask the question; who is Graham Cooke, Sean Bolz, Kris Vallotton, and Russ Walden that they can speak for God? Yes, speak for the Maker of Heaven and Earth, The One Who Made us, the One Who redeemed us, and the One who desires we submit to His word. The One Who says about Himself, Jer 23:23 "Am I a God who is near," declares the LORD, "And not a God far off?"

Is He so far off that we need to go to a man to get a "word from the Lord?"  If this is the case, that He is near to each of us, why would we listen to someone speaking for God when we have the entire Bible OF GOD SPEAKING TO US, and I can pray DIRECTLY TO HIM. Or is it that we don't want to hear from God directly in His Word because it will reveal our sin? BAM. Yeah, let that sink in. These "feel-good word salads" do the opposite by TAKING US AWAY FROM GOD. 

Here is what real prophets do the Lord says: Jer 23:22 But if they had stood in My council,  Then they would have announced My words to My people, And would have turned them back from their evil way, And from the evil of their deeds. 

We should ask ourselves: Is this idolatry?  I will submit to you that seeking words from people, other than the Lord, is a form of evil because it is opposed to God's will. Please pray that you are not under a delusion because 2 Thes 2:11 says, "And for this reason, God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie." WOW. That should cause us serious pause. And a turn to the Lord to ask the question, am I deceived? If you are too far in, you will dismiss this blog and video without asking the question. If we are disciples, we will ask. 

Jesus said, "do not call anyone Father, or Rabbi but brother." Again, why would we think this person is hearing from God FOR YOU? Why would we put faith into these words, "The Father says,"?  Could our pursuit of these so-called prophets of nonsense adjectives be our idolatry? Do we put the same weight of these false words as God's words? Yes, people do! I did when I was younger and saw the damage done to many people by following the imaginations of men or women. And money is involved, which another aspect of Exodus 32. 

Let us ask further questions. What about the groups like Bethel that pursue a false form of the gospel called "signs and wonders"? Their focus seems to be on training people to do signs and wonders versus training them to know and understand the Bible. God's word created the universe and thus will change us as well. 

Did you know that signs and wonders Christ did were to establish to Jewish people that HE WAS THE CREATOR GOD AND THAT HIS KINGDOM WAS AT HAND? These signs verified WHO HE WAS TO THEM. Bill Johnson will lower Christ to just a spirit-filled man so that you and I have the same power as Christ! Notice the children of Israel lowered God to a golden calf! This is a horrible doctrine! 

Our God is the Creator of the Universe. We must treat Him as such. Our face should be on the ground before the cross by placing our sin on Him for taking our punishment. WE SHOULD HAVE THE RIGHT FEAR OF HIM TO OFFEND HIM. We can then focus on Christ and becoming disciples. Studying God's word means we have a new focus: to live praiseworthy to Him (fleeing sinful lifestyles). 

Let's not conform to these words of men. But submit to Christ by the renewing of our minds.  

Rom 12:2 And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Can you be deceived is our original question. Let us also state this principle: Any information we take in and are not critical of it, but accepting, we will indoctrinate ourselves is phase 1 of the enemy's plan to deceive us. Next, which is Phase 2, we will perpetuate the same indoctrination by encouraging and sharing others to be a part of these false words and false teachers. Phase 3 is when you are solid in the indoctrination, that you vehemently disagree with people who share contrary information WITHOUT DOING THE HOMEWORK TO CHECK OUT WHAT THEY ARE SAYING. 

 Brothers and sisters, please read Exodus 32, Jeremiah 14, and 23 and see how closely these false prophets fit the profile of false. Our hope is we will turn to the objective truth of God's word WHO IS SPEAKING TO US DIRECTLY in the Bible with no need for a man to teach us. 1 John 2:26! We say this so you will not be deceived!  Why? We were once deceived by being too trusting. No one speaks for God, But GOD!   

For Search Engines: There are many bible verses about love, and there are many bible verse of the day programs. The holy bible provides these remarkable bible commentary. Bible Study and online bible study are available at biblestudycompany.com. Bible verses of faith are of interest as well. Even bible verses about hope are helpful. Bible verses about women are encouraging. Read the Bible online with biblestudycompany.com. We will all do better when love is patient love is kind. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me in times of trouble. With daily bible devotions, I grow. The gifts of the holy spirit are for every day. Online bible study is so helpful. biblestudycompany is a free online bible. With so many books of the bible, I can grow. We love inspirational bible verses in daily Bible reading.


 

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Additional Resources

For more info: Revealing Truth https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC_Zz...

Messed up Church Steve Kozar https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCV4D...

Spencer Smith https://www.youtube.com/user/spencers...

Chris Rosebrough https://www.youtube.com/user/Fighting...

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  Jul 13 2020

Bible Study EXODUS 32 PART 1 - CAN YOU BE DECEIVED?

Bible Study EXODUS 32 PART 1 - CAN YOU BE DECEIVED?

The golden calf doesn't mean much to us today in our modern church, or does it? Can you be deceived? Yes, we can. How will you respond if you are disappointed in God, church, or people? Some people are deciding that "it wasn't worth it" to follow Christ because the experience didn't work out. What if we struggled with doubts and couldn't express them to people and were afraid to say those doubts out loud to God?  We felt this way once. God confronted us on our rebellion. Yes, our rebellion. We needed to get gut-level honest with God and ask for His help. But this disillusionment is happening today at a higher rate to people in the church. What could be the possible cause? 

Our podcast goes into detail about some of the problems we see in the church today. We show how focusing on Moses (people or pastors or celebrities) will fail us. What if God doesn't deliver our wants the way we want them in the timing we desire? Is God a giant vending machine to serve us? People push the love of God. What does that even mean? What if God is all about His plans and purposes, and it is our "job" to line up with those plans and intentions called His will? It is your work to believe in Jesus Christ and place your sin on Him to rescue you from this world that is in the process of dying. But you are to serve Him, and not the other way around. 

What if we were created to serve God, and then to do His will, but we got lost in the fog and noise of the culture around us and lost our way to Him? What if we come back to Him with this: "Lord, I "got" nothing. I need You and am willing to submit to Your Word, with no expectations of anything. I am sorry for worshipping false gods of people, expectations, and lustful desires. Will You change me with Your Power?" If we take that stance and open His word to obey Him, our lives will dramatically change. The power of God to change will come upon us. "Hey Ric, got some scripture to back that up?" Sure do. Go to Deut 28 whole chapter. Pay attention to verse 1. Notice what follows. Then read Ex 32. Join us for the exploration of Exodus 32. Can you be deceived? Yes, you can!

For Search Engines: There are many bible verses about love, and there are many bible verse of the day programs. The holy bible provides these remarkable bible commentary. Bible Study and online bible study are available at biblestudycompany.com. Bible verses of faith are of interest as well. Even bible verses about hope are helpful. Bible verses about women are encouraging. Read the Bible online with biblestudycompany.com. We will all do better when love is patient love is kind. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me in times of trouble. With daily bible devotions, I grow. The gifts of the holy spirit are for every day. Online bible study is so helpful. biblestudycompany is a free online bible. With so many books of the bible, I can grow. We love inspirational bible verses in daily Bible reading.

 

MP3 AUDIO ONLY 

For Search Engines: There are many bible verses about love, and there are many bible verse of the day programs. The holy bible provides these remarkable bible commentary. Bible Study and online bible study are available at biblestudycompany.com. Bible verses of faith are of interest as well. Even bible verses about hope are helpful. Bible verses about women are encouraging. Read the Bible online with biblestudycompany.com. We will all do better when love is patient love is kind. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me in times of trouble. With daily bible devotions, I grow. The gifts of the holy spirit are for every day. Online bible study is so helpful. biblestudycompany is a free online bible. With so many books of the bible, I can grow. We love inspirational bible verses in daily Bible reading.
 

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  Jul 07 2020

How progressive Christianity "gets" you

This is an excellent 6-minute video. The first part perfectly describes a church we were in many years ago. The second part is how we can get sucked into progressive or social justice churches. They tend to preach love as acceptance but the Word of God calls us all to holiness (being set apart for Him). Teaching love without Holiness is false teaching. It gives people the wrong view of Christ and is thus a false gospel.

Here is what God calls love. "God gave His only begotten son"...to rescue us from sin and death. Not to stay in sin. If you believe you are not in sin, and the Bible reads differently, then ask the Lord to help you and reveal what His will is for your life. IF you have the HS working in you, there will be a change to His will and lining up with His word. If there is making excuses or twisting the original meanings of the Scripture to accommodate what the Bible calls sin, then this is NOT the HOLY SPIRIT but is calling evil good...and worse excusing evil in the name of God. But with His help, He will change us. Let God do the changing. Then He gets the glory.

Romans 12:9 says: Let love be without hypocrisy. Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. This isn't the case today. People are calling evil good and good evil. Sad.

Then the Lord calls us with Grace and gives us the power to turn from evil. Titus 2:11-12 For the grace of God has appeared (Jesus Christ), bringing salvation to all men, 12 instructing us (the word of God) to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age. So grace is the power of God working in our lives to move us away from evil. And yes we can be deceived, especially if WE WANT TO BELIEVE something to be true. But God is able to show us our motives.

 

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  Jun 24 2020

Bible Study: Exodus 7 Part 2 Snakes and Dragons!

Could it be the magicians were just projecting an illusion? God wasn't. His Dragon vs. the snakes...ate the snakes. Our God is above the chaos of the world's man-made turmoil. 

In this podcast, we discuss enslavement to the world. The children of Israel, in Exodus 7, are an excellent example of how we can slowly become a slave to a system. They lived a comfortable life under the leadership of Joseph, while in the country of Egypt. I am sure they wove a bit of the Egyptian culture into the fabric of their teachings from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Maybe they threw in an idol or two, it wouldn't hurt to compromise a bit if it made for a more comfortable life! In a four-hundred-year span, after Joseph's death, they found themselves in complete slavery to the Egyptians. 

This story is just as prevalent today amongst our Christian brothers and sisters. Do we know God's word and walk it out in our lives? How many compromises do we make, all in the name of a better life in Egypt (or the world?) Let's be inclusive and accepting of everything, aka allow sin in our lives, at the expense of the true Word of God.  

Do we recognize false prophets? Can we decipher between half-truths and the whole truth?  God has given his Word and Spirit to guide and teach us. 1John 2:26-end of the chapter.  Besides, we're given the power to walk out his purposes. 

Will you follow God's perspective or their latest or newest trend? Trends don't last. Just look at your bookshelf. But the word of God is dusty. Perhaps a change of view is needed? We could ask the Lord to give us His perspective from scripture versus some commentator. Your life will dramatically change. Ours did. We don't look back. 

Join Bible Study Company as we discuss being a Warrior for Christ instead of a slave to the world.

Proverbs 30:5 Every Word of God is tested; He is a shield to those who take refuge in him.

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  Jun 12 2020

Bible Study: Exodus 7 part 1 Do we have God's perspective?

Bible Study: Exodus 7 part 1 Do we have God's perspective? We will observe two men and their response to God’s command. I will begin with Moses, who just returned from an unsuccessful attempt at asking Pharaoh to let the Hebrew slaves go. Pharaoh refused to let them go and increased the oppression of the sons of Israel. The conflict of all conflicts begins!  Join Ric and Mary Joyner is this interesting podcast. 

Moses not only had the King of Egypt angry with him but also the very people he was trying to help. Moses complained to the Lord about his unskilled speech. For our lives and walk with the Lord, we are going to make mistakes. But Who are we serving? If we obey God's will, He takes care of His agenda. Comforting isn't it? Moses expressed to God, that God indeed made a mistake in choosing him to help in God's redemptive plan. Moses was expecting instant results. And we live in a society that demands fast. Do we want fast or God's will? How will we look at our lives to see where we stand? Moses was honest with God and also discouraged even to the point of accusing God of being wrong! In our lives, we have those times.  

Does this sound familiar? How many times do we get angry and frustrated because God's timing doesn’t line up with ours? Do you ever have the perspective that if you are obedient to God’s word, your life will be fine? We all experience times in our life where we question God and his purposes. Moses was at that place, but he returned to the Lord and poured out his heart. Returning to God and asking for his help are always the answer. Pharaoh, on the other hand, is a perfect example of pure rebellion. He refused to know Who God was or listen to His Word from Moses. Pharaoh’s heart was all about power, control, and feeding his flesh. With each refusal to honor God’s command, his heart grew harder. What an example of pure evil.

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We can be both of these people at different times in our lives. If we choose to return to God and ask for his kingdom view, he will help us see it and give us the power to walk it out. If we choose to turn from God and his way in favor of the world and our own view, it will eventually end in destruction. We know the end of the story with Pharaoh and it’s not good.  

During these times we want to question God. But He wants us to come to Him even more and layout our hurt, heartache, disappointment, and frustration. And today is a good day with the events in our nation to do this very thing. Grab Psalm 36 and read it back to the Lord. It will comfort you. Join us for this sobering podcast and join us in asking these questions. Are we going to ask God questions or question, God?

Who is biblestudycompany.com? 

We are: An online study Bible with a social media community

Our mission: Studying Scripture to live a praiseworthy life

Our vision: That a “Company” of believers are studying Scripture to live a praiseworthy life

Our Hope: That Pew-sitters move to disciple and then to disciple teachers bearing fruit for Christ

For Search Engines: There are many bible verses about love, and there are many bible verse of the day programs. The holy bible provides these remarkable bible commentary. Bible Study and online bible study are available at biblestudycompany.com. Bible verses of faith are of interest as well. Even bible verses about hope are helpful. Bible verses about women are encouraging. Read the Bible online with biblestudycompany.com. We will all do better when love is patient love is kind. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me in times of trouble. With daily bible devotions, I grow. The gifts of the holy spirit are for every day. Online bible study is so helpful. biblestudycompany is a free online bible. With so many books of the bible, I can grow. We love inspirational bible verses in daily Bible reading.  
 

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  May 29 2020

What does God think of our marriage?

A real question we must consider. Why? Because God's perspective on our marriage and anything for that matter are pivotal for the future. If you are married or in a situation where you are thinking about divorce or are divorced, think about taking time with this podcast and video. Mary and I are married 40 years this year. But, our marriage was almost over several years ago. What changed? Our relationship with God. "Too vague," you say? This podcast goes into some honest discussion about how marriage consists of 3 people. God, you and the one you are marrying or are currently married. But how can a marriage be healed? By submitting our hearts to God's word and a change in attitude toward being honest in all areas of our lives. Join us for this exciting and frank discussion. Share your comments. If you need prayer, let us know.

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For Search Engines: There are many bible verses about love, and there are many bible verse of the day programs. The holy bible provides these remarkable bible commentary. Bible Study and online bible study are available at biblestudycompany.com. Bible verses of faith are of interest as well. Even bible verses about hope are helpful. Bible verses about women are encouraging. Read the Bible online with biblestudycompany.com. We will all do better when love is patient love is kind. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me in times of trouble. With daily bible devotions, I grow. The gifts of the holy spirit are for every day. Online bible study is so helpful. biblestudycompany is a free online bible. With so many books of the bible, I can grow. We love inspirational bible verses in daily Bible reading.

 

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  May 15 2020

Bible Study: Rethinking the Sabbath (Shabbat)

Episode Summary
Ric and Mary Joyner of Biblestudycompany.com rethink the Shabbat. We think you will find this podcast interesting and worth your time. It just may change your life. It is changing ours! 

Episode Notes
We are taking a fresh look at the Sabbath or Shabbat. Podcast for Pewsitters and Biblestudycompany.com are giving a shout out to the TV series, The Chosen, by Dallas Jenkins. In the series, Dallas portrayed a Shabbat dinner in several instances. One was a woman of an ancient tent-dwelling group of people preparing for a Shabbat meal, which was touching. A boy was asking his mother, the purpose of Shabbat. She explains the fellowship aspect and the advantage of gathering family and friends. As a husband and father, I personally love the "call to Shabbat" by honoring the wife by declaring: "A woman of valor, who can find? Far beyond pearls is her value. Her husband's heart trusts in her, and he shall lack no fortune". (Proverbs 31) WOW!

Let's shift back to bible study of the Shabbat. Is the Shabbat just an old testament custom or "law" that is only for the Jewish people? Or are Christians to avoid old testament laws and traditions because we are under a "new covenant" and are not under old testament law? Or, as Christians, do we have a wrong view of the "law" and the Bible altogether? What if we took a new perspective that the "whole counsel of God " (Acts 20:27)----the whole Bible is to teach us about the plans and purposes of God? What if the Shabbat has lessons to teach us about the character of God and even our lack of dependence on God? Read Isaiah 58:13-14. Is it possible to put aside your will for one day? We need God's power in our life. Fortunately, His grace comes to us when we submit to His word.

Shall we honor the Shabbat? You decide as you listen to the podcast.

The feasts and traditions of the Bible teach us important truths about God and point to Christ.

Let's join Ric and Mary Joyner in the podcast "Rethinking the Sabbath." 

To buy The Chosen DVD set

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