Easter Sunday? Happy Easter!

Easter Sunday? Happy Easter!

Today the whole Christendom is celebrating Easter Sunday. I mean the Roman Catholics, the Protestants, the Evangelicals, the Baptists, the Methodists, the Episcopalians, the Foursquare, the Pentecostals, the ... whatever Church it may be. Even those "Protestants" who hate the Roman church are celebrating Easter "Sunday" together with them that they hate, following their examples.

The Biblical calendar does not line up with the calendar used by the Roman Church, and also does not line up with the calendar used by Jews and Messianics who follow the moon. This day the 27th of March 2016 is not the "day of resurrection". Why force the resurrection day to be Sunday and the death of Christ to be Friday, and the Sabbath between them to be Saturday? The Bible does not teach that.

Today is only the 7th day of the month of Abib that began on March 21, after the Spring Equinox of March 20. The real Passover date (the night before Jesus died) is on the 14th of Abib (first month) and that is on April 3, Sunday. April 4 Monday, Jesus death. The first day of Unleavened bread. Jesus was in the grave for 3 days and 3 nights. (Abib 16,17,18). The 18th of Abib is the weekly Sabbath (this year it is Thursday! Lol!) And the day that Jesus rose again - the 19th of Abib (this year it is April 8, Friday!). So it is not Easter Sunday!

Easter Sunday, Easter eggs, Easter bunnies, Easter sunrise services, etc. are not according to the Bible. Yes, there is the word "Easter" in the Bible and it is mentioned only once.

Acts 12:1 Now about that time Herod the king stretched forth his hands to vex certain of the church.

2 And he killed James the brother of John with the sword.

3 And because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.)

4 And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people.

5 Peter therefore was kept in prison: but prayer was made without ceasing of the church unto God for him.

The word "Easter" was mentioned there and it is only once and in the KJB. This Easter was connected to the days of unleavened bread.

In Exodus 12:18 it was said: In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.

The 14th day of the month Abib they shall eat unleavened bread until the 21st day. (8 days).

In Leviticus 23:

5 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD's passover.

6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.

The 14th day is the Lord's Passover.

The 15th day to 21st are the 7 days of Unleavened bread.

The Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover are used interchangeably and are synonymous.

Deuteronomy 16:16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:

Luke 22: 1 Now the feast of unleavened bread drew nigh, which is called the Passover.

1 Corinthians 5: 7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:

8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Here Paul talked about Passover and Unleavened Bread as the same thing.

In the case of Acts 12, when Peter was in prison, they were the days of Unleavened Bread which was held for 8 days - from the 14th to the 21st day of Abib/Nisan (the first month). Unleavened bread was mentioned in Acts 12:3 and then in 12:4 was Easter. Is Easter an alien word and not connected to Unleavened Bread? Why did Luke mention it? Because that word Easter is the same word as Passover and/or Unleavened bread.

There are King James Bible Onlyists who argue that Luke was not talking about the Passover but about a “pagan” Easter because as they say Herod was a “pagan”. But it doesn’t make sense.

Verse 3 says that “because he saw it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to take Peter also. (Then were the days of unleavened bread.)”. Herod wanted to please the Jews and the Jews have their Passover week that time. The Easter Luke was talking about is the Passover and not any pagan feast.

You may say that Luke did not say that because you may say that only the translators of the KJB used that word. But no! Why would they use a word not related to the event?

In Acts 12:4 that "intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people" means "intending after the days of Unleavened bread...."

The word Easter is not a pagan word, and it is not connected to the goddess Ishtar. They may sound alike but they are different. Easter may Esther but Easter is not Esther. Ishtar may sound Esther but Ishtar is not Esther!

The word Easter is πασχα in Greek, the same word as Passover. But why Easter is the word used in Acts 12:4?

We don't deny that the word Easter is also connected to pagan worship for many do pagan practices during their Easter Sunday holiday such as Easter eggs and bunnies, in honor of the goddess of fertility and spring. But the Biblical Easter is not that.

The word "Easter" in the KJB is not a mistranslation. It is the right word. Easter is an anglo-saxon word for Passover.

According to Adam Clarke:

"The term Easter, inserted here by our translators, they borrowed from the ancient Anglo-Saxon service-books, or from the version of the Gospels, which always translates the to pasca of the Greek by this term;

e. g., Matt. xxvi. 2: Ye know that after two days is the feast of the passover. -- (Anglo-Saxon) Wite ye that aefter twam dagum beoth Eastro.

Matt. xvi. 19: And they made ready the passover. -- (Anglo- Saxon) And hig gegearwodon hym Easter thenunga (i.e. the paschal supper.)

Prefixed to Matt. xxviii. 1, are these words: -- (Anglo-Saxon) This part to be read on Easter even.

And, before Matt. xxviii. 8, these words: (Anglo-Saxon) Mark xiv. 12: And the first day of unleavened bread when they killed the passover. -- (Anglo-Saxon) And tham forman daegeazimorum, tha hi Eastron offrodon.

So the word “Easter” means Passover, and since it was in the Acts of the apostles written by Luke, it has now a new meaning because that was the time Jesus was already risen and glorified. The Passover of the church of God, the body of Christ is not the same as the Jewish Passover. The church of God believes that Jesus Christ is their Passover and it centered on Jesus Christ’s death, burial and resurrection. That is Christ’s victory over sin and death and his redemption by his blood.


The 8 days feast of unleavened bread or Passover has three feasts that typifies Christ’s death, burial and resurrection. They are Passover (Death), Unleavened Bread (Burial) and Firstfruits (Resurrection of Christ). Then fifty (50) days after Firstfruits is the Feast of Weeks or Pentecost (Man’s resurrection in Christ). All those feasts were already fulfilled by Christ in his coming.

Passover – Christ’s sacrificial death to redeem man from death.

Unleavened bread - God’s deliverance of Israel from Egypt. Christ’s sinlessness. Christ’s burial, no decay. Our deliverance from leaven (sin/wickedness.)

Firstfruits. The resurrection of Christ.

Notice that Jesus Christ fulfilled these three (Spring) feasts of Passover, Unleavened Bread and Firstfruits through his death, burial and resurrection (1 Cor. 15:3,4).

Pentecost/ Feast of Weeks. Fifty (50) days after Firstfruits (Easter). The resurrection of man in Christ.

The last three feasts (the Fall Feasts) of Trumpets, Atonement and Tabernacles WERE fulfilled at Christ’s Second coming (70 A.D.)

Feast of Trumpets. Christ’s coming and Man’s deliverance from the day of wrath. The resurrection of the dead. The destruction of Jerusalem. The Feast of Trumpets was the day Jesus Christ was born. And it is the same day he came back again to Jerusalem to destroy the apostate Jewish nation. This is both the day of God’s wrath and the day of redemption.

Day of Atonement. Christ’s sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins happened at the cross but as High Priest his sacrifice was accepted by God at his appearing in the presence of God for us. Redemption was finished at his appearing the second time (Heb. 9:28).

Feast of Tabernacles. Christ’s indwelling presence in the church, his body, his habitation. The new heavens and the new earth (Rev. 21,22). His indwelling presence in every believer even after those events.

Easter is just one of the dates we celebrate in commemoration of the fulfilled acts of the Lord Jesus Christ for us. Our Easter/ Passover celebrations are not limited in certain dates in our calendar. I don’t celebrate the Easter of the Roman Catholic Church and of the Protestant Churches. The Easter I know is based on the Biblical calendar that is based on the beginning of the Biblical month Abib on Spring. So it does not line up with the Roman Church. The Roman Church celebrates Easter on the 27^th of March, Good Friday on 25^th of March. The other Christians follow them. Jewish people and Messianics have also different dates and they follow the moon. They begin the month following the sight of the new moon after the Spring Equinox.  The New moon will be on April 7, so the month may begin April 8. Their Passover will be on April 22 up to April 30 (evening).

The Roman Church and the Jews don’t have the same dates. But we don’t follow the moon. Our Passover is on April 3 and it is on the 14^th of Abib. The first day of the first month follows right after the Spring Equinox. Yes, the day and not night. The day begins at the “day” light, on “sun dawn” not on “sundown”. It does not even begin at 12:00 midnight.

Easter Sunday is not Biblical for the Bible does not say that Jesus rose on the day of Sunday! Sunday is not the first day of the week. And Saturday is not the seventh day of the week. This belief that Saturday is the Sabbath or seventh day and Sunday is the first day of the week is the reason why others can’t believe in the 3 full days and 3 full nights burial of Jesus Christ. So they consent with the Roman Church’s Friday Death, Saturday in the grave and Sunday Resurrection. What’s so special with Sunday? Still others cannot move on. There are those who said that Jesus Christ was in the grave for 3 full days and 3 full nights, that he did not die on Friday but on Wednesday. They say that he was in the grave on Thursday to Saturday and rose again on Sunday!  Oh my, what is so special with Sunday? Why can’t they leave their Sunday doctrine?  Also I know some people who believe in the 3 days and 3 nights of Jesus in the grave but they say that Jesus rose again on Saturday afternoon! What is so special about Saturday that they cannot leave their Saturday doctrine? They force the events to happen on certain days such as Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

If Jesus died on Monday, he would be in the grave on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, and rise on Friday. If he died on Sunday, he would rise on Thursday. If he died on Tuesday, he would die on Saturday. Well, the name of the day doesn’t matter. What matters is that he died on Abib 15 and rose again on Abib 19. We don’t know exactly what was the name of the day during that year Jesus died. We are not even sure of the year. It may be 29 A.D., 30 A.D., 31 A.D., 32 A.D., 33 A.D. or 34 A.D. Many have calculated (even me) but the question is how are we sure that these calculations are accurate? Can we rely on the online time calculators? I also made my own calculation and I have two versions – one the 30 A.D. version and the other the 33 A.D. version. I don’t know, I am not sure how accurate are my calculations. I simply did it first for fun and second out of curiosity. But really these studies are rewarding. I have not yet gotten the clearest explanation but things are doing fine.

Well, it is not the day or the certain dates that are essential although we must have the correct dates. The most important thing is that our Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled all these things. He finished his works and now we have complete redemption and are “complete in him”!

Colossians 2: 9 For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily.

 10 And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:

 11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:

 12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.

 13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;

 14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

 15 And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.

 16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:

 17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.

 18 Let no man beguile you of your reward in a voluntary humility and worshipping of angels, intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind,

 19 And not holding the Head, from which all the body by joints and bands having nourishment ministered, and knit together, increaseth with the increase of God.

 20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,

 21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not;

 22 Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men?

 23 Which things have indeed a shew of wisdom in will worship, and humility, and neglecting of the body; not in any honour to the satisfying of the flesh.

                                     

Happy Easter (Passover) but it is not today.

mti Usld=y  Full Revelation Bible

Full Revelation Bible: Did God bring heaven here or are we going to heave...

Full Revelation Bible: Did God bring heaven here or are we going to heave...: Did God bring heaven to earth or we are going to heaven? Choosing one of these is becoming an extreme. Some say that God does not ...

Did God bring heaven here or are we going to heaven?

Did God bring heaven to earth or we are going to heaven?

Choosing one of these is becoming an extreme. Some say that God does not want us to go to heaven because he brought heaven here. Some say God will bring us to heaven, through the "rapture" or through "death".

If God brought heaven here and he doesnt bring us to heaven, then how about at the time of death? Is that the end of everything, our heavenlike life on earth? Wont the saint go to heaven and be with the Lord for ever?

Emphasis is given to the idea that we are in heaven now, that God brought heaven to earth, that the "kingdom of God" is within you. Yes, we are there! Yes the kingdom of God is within. Within what?

Luke 17:20 And when he was demanded of the Pharisees, when the kingdom of God should come, he answered them and said, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation:

21 Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there! for, behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

When the Lord Jesus was saying these words to the religious people the Pharisees, he didnt say to the Pharisees, "Hey, you religious Pharisees, God;s kingdom is within your hearts!". If that is the case, why would he speak woes to these religious leaders?

The kingdom of God is "within you" does not mean "within" the Pharisees, but that God's kingdom is IN them, AMONG them through the rejected Messias, Jesus.

Luke 11:20 But if I with the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom of God is come upon you.

The king was with them but they didnt recognize his presence. If them was with them and among them then the kingdom was with them. There was the kingdom.

Even Paul the apostle said that::

Romans 14:17 For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost.

John the writer of the book of Revelation proclaimed this truth:

Revelation 21:1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.

2 And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

3 And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God.

4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away.

The tabernacle of God was with men, and he will dwell with them. It happened through Jesus Christ.

John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

Earth became heaven when Christ came, the temple of God, the tabernacle of God was with them. Jesus is "Emmanuel" - God with Us.

So it is true, God brought heaven to earth through Jesus Christ and his presence remains for ever. Despite all the evils and pains in this world, God is here through Jesus Christ. He indwells those who believe in him.

But the fact that believers will go to heaven is also true. Paul the apostle speaks of a "heavenly kingdom", God's heavenly kingdom.

2 Timothy 4:18 And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

And also believers are "raised up together, and made to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 2:6). And this place where Christ ascended to is "far above all heavens" (Eph. 4:12). Is that figurative? No! It is a literal heaven. There are three heavens. The first heaven is the firmament where the birds fly, where the sun and the moon and the stars and planets are. The second heaven, above the firmament (metal glass covering) is the watery heaven (not outer space, no outer space). The third heaven is the place above the watery heaven, and thats the abode of the New Jerusalem. Above this heaven is the heaven of heavens where God is - the highest literally and figuratively. Far above all heavens.

Into this place, the third heaven God took his people, the church his bride. None left behind. Rapture? Probably. I dont like that word rapture. It was being caught up. Literally? yes. They were. Not us. Prophecy was fulfilled in the first century church.

When I say that we are going to heaven (the saints, the elect, not all men), I dont mean rapture. It is not that Christ will meet us in the air to be with him ever. That was a fulfilled prophecy for the chruch. But what I mean is that, Christ will appear with us in the heavenly places. And it is not a one time event. It is an individual believer's experience when he dies. The dust returns to where it was and the spirit returns to God. And in the case of the saint, it is "clothed". And it is IBN or immortal body now. As believers in Christ, we have this immortal body now. And this immortal body is what we wear the moment this "mortal corruptible body" dies and goes back to the dust.

So what is correct? Heaven came here or we are going to heaven? BOTH are correct.

Philippians 1:23 For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:

The believer who has Christ in him has God's heaven in him. Heaven is here with him because of Jesus Christ. And the moment his mortal body dies, he wears his immortal, heavenly, spiritual body and "departs" to be with Christ Jesus for ever.

THE CHURCH IN THE PAST AND THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE MYSTERY REVELATION

This is how I used to understand "rightly dividing the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15 KJB).

I was a Mid-Acts Dispensationalist who believed that in the present dispensation of the grace of God, there is one true Church, called the Body of Christ, which began historically with the salvation and commissioning of Paul the apostle; separate and distinct from the flock of God and the prophesied earthly kingdom of Christ. I used to believe in the dichotomy between Israel and the Church.

When I became a Full Preterist, that's still what I believed: Israel in the past and Church in the present and future.

But things have changed and my views have changed in my studies of the words of God.

I still believe in that division - i.e. "rightly dividing". But now it is no more Israel and the Church, but Church and Fellowship. Yes, because the Church is the Israel of God. The bride of Christ is the same as the body of Christ. Israel is the Church. Yes, I still believe in rightly dividing the word of truth, between "Prophecy" and "Mystery". Prophecy is about Israel and it was fulfilled already. And that is the Church of God, the Body of Christ which began at Christ's resurrection. The church is the joint-body of believing Jews and Gentiles (the house of Judah and the house of Israel). The Gentiles in the New Testament were the members of the house of Israel that became the strangers of the covenant and the scattered people among the nations. Now that the fullness of the Gentiles came in, all Israel was saved (Romans 11:25,26).. Finished. Everything about the Church is fulfilled. We are not in the age of the church. The church is already in heaven (1 Thess. 4:14-18). No one here on earth belongs to the church. Even the dispensation of the grace of God (Eph. 3:2) was fulfilled already. The "but now" (Eph. 2:10). God gave Israel a grace period and it was fulfilled. We are now in the "ages to come" (Eph. 2:7) and it is in the "world without end" (Eph. 3:21). Yes, the church is in throughout all ages, world without end, but in heaven, not on earth.

But since the fulfillment of all things, God is now working for "all men" and these men are "fellow-heirs with one another". These "all men" are members of the "Fellowship of the Mystery". It is not prophesied. This mystery is already revealed, a "Revelation". The Gentiles (all men) are of the "same body". It does not talk about the church, the body of Christ, but of the truth that we all men in Christ are joint-bodies, or fellow-bodies. All are one in Christ. Christ is all and in all.

The so-called "churches" today and church activities are simply "religions" and "institutions" of ,men. Founded by men, unauthorized by God. No one today is authorized to build a church, to form a congregation, to baptize in water, to ordain ministers, to administer Lord's supper, to do those things authorized by the Lord for the church in the past.

Because there are no more apostles and prophets (Eph. 2:20) where the church was built upon their foundation, as their duties and ministries fulfilled, the church was fulfilled. God gave the gifts of apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers (Eph. 4:11) for the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edification of the body of Christ, til "we" (Paul and the church of the first century) all come to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God (unification of the revelations of God, i.e. when the Bible was completed), unto "A PERFECT MAN" (the maturity of the church, the fullness of the church), unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Eph. 4:12-13). That was already fulfilled. Church is finished and we have now the complete Word of God in written form, the Holy Bible, thats when Paul wrote his last epistle (Col. 1:25), to fulfill the word of God (i.e. to make complete the word of God). He wrote Colossians as the last book. And the Bible was completed. Paul was the last apostle (huling "SUGÒ"). After him, no more. To him was given the dispensation (stewardship) of "the gospel", of "the grace of God", "of the fullness of times" and "of God" (1 Corinthians 9:17; Ephesians 1:10; Ephesians 3:2; Colossians 1:25). And we today are to live according to the "pure truth" also called "pure grace" truth in the epistles of Paul the apostle (excluding those things already fulfilled).

Today, everyone is called to believe in the gospel of Christ and receive the gift of salvation in Christ (Romans 6:23). Every believer is called to be an ambassador for Christ and preach the gospel for it is God's will that all men be saved and come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4). We are not required to gather together and conduct worship services but only to "study the Scriptures" together. No tithes, no offerings, no rituals, no ceremonies, no dramas, no church activities. Not even "house church". No apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. But only fellowship around the word of God and edifying one another.

Ephesians 3: 8 Unto me, who am less than the least of all saints, is this grace given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ;

9 And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ:

2 Timothy 2: 15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

24 And the servant of the Lord must not strive; but be gentle unto all men, apt to teach, patient,

25 In meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth;

26 And that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will.

2 Timothy 3: 15 And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.

16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

2 Timothy 4: 1 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;

2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.