TRADITIONAL EASTER
DOES YOUR TRADITIONAL ‘EASTER’ = A GOLDEN CALF?
Tradition has brought us two days called ‘Good Friday’ and ‘Easter Sunday’. Jesus supposedly being crucified on Good Friday and raised from the dead on Easter Sunday!
Let us examine the scriptures to see just what did transpired at Calvary. The events — crucifixion (death), burial and resurrection form a base to our beliefs as Christians. Truth is important because it releases the Spirit of Truth from within to build upon such a foundation.
Let us set the scene . . .
12 HOURS of NIGHT + 12 HOURS of DAY = ONE DAY
THE FULL DAY in Bible times consisted of the evening and the morning (Gen.1:4+3). Sundown to sundown totalling 24 hours. It was made up of 6.00 pm — 6.00 am = night and 6.00 am — 6.00 pm = day.
There were three specific times during the day that were prominent.
3rd. hour of the day = 9.00 am (the time of the Morning Sacrifice in the Temple)
6th. hour of the day = noon.
9th. Hour of the day = 3.00 pm (the time of the Evening Sacrifice in the Temple).
THE SIGN OF JONAH
Matthew 12:38-40 Jesus was in the grave the same time as Jonah was in the belly of the whale = 3 days + 3 nights = 72 hours.
JESUS DIED . . . when? He was the Passover Lamb (I Cor.5:7 Christ our Passover was sacrificed for us). Lev.23:5-8 states that Passover Day was on the 14th.Abib (first month of Hebrew year). Jesus died at the 9th hour (3.00 pm).
The 14th. Abib The 14th. Abib is like a birthday date: each year it would fall on a different day of the week. In the year that Jesus died, it fell on a Wednesday which is easily seen as being in the middle of the week. Don’t forget that Daniel 9:24-27 declares that Messiah is cut off in the MIDST of the week. However one stretches things, Friday will never be in the middle of the week!
JESUS BURIED IN THE TOMB. Jesus was taken down from the cross about 4.30 pm (‘give and take’). It took a while for Joseph of Arithamaea to obtain permission from the Sanhedrin to bury the body of Jesus. He first had to wait until after Jesus was declared dead and then approach the Sanhedrin.
the Feast of Unleavened Bread
The 15th. Abib The 15th. Abib was the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread and was an annual Sabbath day dictating that no servile work should be done therein.
The burial of Jesus was somewhat rushed as they had to complete that work before 6.00 pm when the ‘special’ Sabbath started (Matthew 27:57-59). There was not time for the usual embalming spices to be prepared and used on Jesus. So it would be safe to conclude that Jesus was entombed around 5.45 pm or so.
EMBALMING SPICES were purchased and prepared on the Friday which was the only workday available for this work that normally took many, many hours to do. THIS ANOINTING would have to wait until after the regular Sabbath was over which brings us to the first day of the week. At 6 p.m. it would now be dark (they didn’t have ‘summer time’!). They decided for the only alternative and that was to get up very early next morning. This they did, only to find that Jesus had already risen
BURIED FOR THREE DAYS
JESUS WAS IN THE GRAVE for exactly 72 hours. Let us check our the scriptures. Mark 9:31 He shall rise the third day; Mark 8:31 after three days rise again. Likewise Matthew 27:63). There is one solution that fits all accounts.
3 days + 3 nights = 72 hours = 71 hours + 59 minutes + 60 seconds. The 60th. second is still a part of day ‘3’.
72 hours + 1 second = day ‘4’.
Seeing that it is not difficult for God to be accurate, Jesus rose from the grave at the split second timing between the 60th. second of the third day and before the first second of the fourth day. It was IN THE THIRD DAY and it was also AFTER THE THIRD DAY (Matthew 28:6).
HE’S ALIVE !
JESUS rose from the dead at around the same time of day ... 5.45 pm was our surmise — the time of His burial. It was at that time on the weekly Sabbath which was three days and three nights from the Wednesday Passover Day.
RESURRECTION was discovered by man early in the ‘day’ part of the first day of the week . . . Sunday morning to us . . . (Luke 24:1-3). He had risen! Not just before they arrived at the open tomb but during the early evening of the day before.
TRADITION
GOOD FRIDAY tradition is very far from the truth and should not be celebrated by those desiring to walk in truth. Friday — originally called FRIGDAY and was the equivalent to VENUS DAY. Venus was the god of increase, fertility etc. The rabbit is the usual example for fast reproduction. Eggs likewise speak of prolific increase as a hen lays daily! These emblems have thus become linked with FRIDAY and they are also labelled ‘good’! By contrast, our remembering Jesus’ death and resurrection is carried out every day, all day and with special emphasis at communion services when the Lord tells us to have such.
SUN-WORSHIP HANGOVER
“EASTER” — This word doesn’t have a Christian origin. It comes from the Babylonish word ASTARTE (pronounced aystar-tey) and is one of the titles given to the Queen of Heaven (Jeremiah 7:18) who was the wife of Nimrod, the Sun God (he was also known as Tammuz - Ezek.7:13+14). It has been inherited via traditions from mythology and especially sun-worship. Such heathen customs include ‘sunrise worship times’ (actually sun-worship) which some Christians hang on to with great emotion.
REMEMBER . . .
The KJV uses the word ‘Easter’ incorrectly as the Greek word is PASCHA which means ‘passover’. In the communion service and in our daily walk, we have been instructed to remember the Lord’s death until He come (I Cor. 11:26). His death released His life for us — to experience it within us. Such LIFE as His, will overcome all the aspects of death still around from the first Adam. We shall not all sleep, but we shall be changed.
Let us be a people of the NEW Covenant which started with the resurrection. Let us be those who believe that Jesus has died for all our sins and that His shed blood keeps on cleansing us from all sin.§
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