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"Worship in spirit and truth"

With Easter approaching, many people Christian and non-Christian are exposed to this celebration and may have questions concerning the various teachings, rites, rituals and traditions that are promulgated by public worship services that appear on TV to a worldwide audience.
If you open your Bible to John 4: 24-26 you will find Jesus words to the Samaritan woman that have meaning for us today.

In this passage two important teachings are revealed vs 24 "God is a Spirit, and those worshiping him must worship him in spirit and truth". 

So the first vital teaching was true worshipers must worship God with spirit and truth!

verse 25& 26  Jesus declares himself to be the Messiah
So in these few passages we learn that Jesus being a Jew, identified himself as the Messiah, the savior of the world, and explained how God wants to be worshiped.

What does it mean to worship with spirit and truth? 
It means to understand the truth and acknowledge that Jesus Christ is the Messiah, the Savior of the world.
Worshiping with spirit means to be serve with all we have, with zeal, worshiping with understanding God's inspired word the Bible. 
The Bible was written by men inspired by God's holy spirit and so the truth is found therein.

Is Easter mentioned in the Bible?

No The name Easter is not mentioned in the Bible.
However, there is a reference to a meal called the Lord's Evening Meal, or Last Supper that Jesus told his followers to continue observing year by year. 
If you check the account at Luke 22 you will see Jesus instructions to get the Passover meal ready. Jesus instituted The Lord's Evening Meal after eating the Passover meal.

As he (Jesus) was a Jew, he observed the Jewish festivals, and the Passover was an important reminder of the Jews being liberated from slavery in Egypt.
 
What are the origins of Easter? (The name, rituals and traditions) 

The name Easter according to the Encyclopedia Brittanica "is a variant of the name of the Anglo-Saxon fertility goddess of springtime Aostre. 

So if the name comes from a pagan (non Christian) fertility goddess how did it become the Easter celebration that is known today? 

The American book of days describes the process saying "there is no doubt that the Church (Catholic) in it's early days adopted the old pagan customs, and gave a "Christian" meaning to them".
 
That same reference work goes on to say, "The ancient (pagan) peoples of Europe, used hares and rabbits and their eggs as part of a pagan fertility ritual in their spring festivals. 

3. Is Easter a celebration that should be observed by all Christians?

Well what do you think? Maybe you think that so much time has passed that the pagan origins don't matter anymore. Well, remember God is not bound by time. He is from eternity to eternity. So just because a celebration has it's roots from paganism from hundreds or even thousands of years ago, how he felt, thousands of years ago, about false worship mixing with truth has not changed, he has not changed with the passing of time.


4. Is it the day or the date that is important? 

So to answer, let's say for example your wedding Anniversary is on September 1. The day you got married was a Saturday.  
So every year you celebrate your anniversary on September 1, right? 
So, does September 1 always fall on a Saturday? Of course not. 

So,because Jesus died on a Friday does that mean we should remember it on a Friday even if it's not the actual date?

So, how to know the actual date? 

Well he died on the Passover day, Nisan 14 according to the Jewish calendar. Every year the Jews calculate what day is Passover, so the actual date this year is March 27,2021. It's not a Friday, it's a Saturday.

So how is it possible to remember Jesus death, to remember on the actual day of his death?

There is a proper way to remember Jesus death and resurrection. There is a memorial remembrance service this coming March 27,2021 after sundown, that will be held worldwide with 20 million or more expected to attend. 
All are welcome to attend! And there is no cost!
Information as to time and place will be given at the end of this write.

5. Does it really matter?

Of course it matters!  If we want to serve God in a way that pleases him we worship with spirit and truth?
So what is the truth about Easter?
Well, it is not a celebration that true Christians would want to be associated with because of it's pagan roots, and pagan traditions. 
It is not mentioned in the Bible, and even the dates are wrong, almost every year.

A good reminder is found at Mark 7:7,8,13 quoting from Isaiah the prophet it reads 7."It is in vain that they keep worshiping me, for they teach commands of men as doctrines 8. You let go of the commandment of God and cling to the tradition of men.13 Thus you make the word of God invalid by your tradition that you have handed down".

If you made it this far congratulations, I know it's an exceedingly long write.
I do thank you.

Here are the references used:
Encyclopedia Brittanica
The American Book of Days
Also the Bible resources found at JW.ORG
All scripture references are from the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (revised ed2013)

For more information please look up JW.ORG and search for local times and locations. No in person meetings will take place, the Memorial of Christs death, will be done virtually by means of zoom.


John Derek Hamilton
March 18,2021
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