By Maria Merola
© Copyright Double Portion Inheritance, November 2007
Rachel was a young Christian girl age 21 from a very good family. She was actively involved at her church with street evangelism and missions to third world countries. A young man at her church named Lucas (who was the same age) captured her heart. The two of them fell in love and within one year they were engaged to be married.
Rachel and Lucas had many fond memories and special dates that they celebrated together. For instance, they celebrated the anniversary of the date they first met on October 31st 1990 at a “Hallelujah Party” at church. It was actually a Halloween party in disguise. Rachel’s church had a costume party and there were trophies and prizes for the “Best Female Bible Character” and also for the “Best Male Bible Character.” That year, Rachel dressed up as Delilah, the Philistine woman who enticed Sampson in the book of Judges.
Coincidentally, Lucas dressed up as Sampson, even though they had never met before and they had not planned to dress up with matching costumes. When the votes were cast, the most votes went to Rachel and Lucas for the best male and female Bible character costumes and they both won trophies and prizes. Everyone took videos of the two of them posing together and acting out parts from the Bible story of “Sampson & Delilah.”
They had lots of fun and laughs as Rachel chased Lucas around with a fake pair of scissors pretending like she was going to cut off all of Lucas’s fake hair from his wig. That night Rachel & Lucas went out for coffee at an all-night diner and they talked all night and got to know one another. They became best friends from that night moving forward and they were inseparable. At first it seemed that their relationship was just a platonic friendship.
Coincidentally, Lucas dressed up as Sampson, even though they had never met before and they had not planned to dress up with matching costumes. When the votes were cast, the most votes went to Rachel and Lucas for the best male and female Bible character costumes and they both won trophies and prizes. Everyone took videos of the two of them posing together and acting out parts from the Bible story of “Sampson & Delilah.”
They had lots of fun and laughs as Rachel chased Lucas around with a fake pair of scissors pretending like she was going to cut off all of Lucas’s fake hair from his wig. That night Rachel & Lucas went out for coffee at an all-night diner and they talked all night and got to know one another. They became best friends from that night moving forward and they were inseparable. At first it seemed that their relationship was just a platonic friendship.
After the production was over the entire congregation went to the basement of the church for refreshments and that was the first time that Rachel and Lucas realized that their relationship was much more than a platonic friendship. They realized that night that they were beginning to have romantic feelings for each other and so they decided that night to officially become “a couple.” At that point, they announced to the church members that they were courting.
It also happened to be Lucas’s birthday on December 25th and the entire church celebrated Lucas’s birthday as well as the new relationship between Lucas & Rachel. As they sat for refreshments in the church basement, they viewed the video of the play that they had just performed in together. They had many fond memories of that night and many photos that they took together as a couple.
Later on that same year, Rachel and Lucas were asked by their church to help organize an Easter Production on March 31st 1991. Rachel played the part of Mary Magdalene and Lucas played the part of Judas. After the Easter Production was over, Lucas and Rachel organized an Easter-Egg hunt.
Lucas and Rachel decided to set their wedding date for Easter Sunday two years into the future on April 11th 1993. They began to plan an Easter Wedding with pastel colors like sea-foam green, lavender, pale yellow, pink, robin-egg blue etc., and for the next two years, Lucas and Rachel began to celebrate all of these important dates as they planned their future wedding.
For instance, they celebrated October 31st (Halloween) with new meaning now for it commemorated the time when Lucas and Rachel had met for the first time and they had both won the best costume award that year. They also celebrated December 25th (Christmas) with new meaning as well for it represented the first time that Lucas and Rachel began to court. They also celebrated Valentine’s Day (February 14th) each year, because it commemorated when Lucas proposed to Rachel. They also celebrated Easter Sunday now with new meaning, for it represented the time when Lucas presented Rachel with a ring and proposed in front of the entire church.
As each anniversary date of one of these special events came up, Rachel and Lucas would plan a special party to celebrate their love for each other. They would get together with family and friends, as Rachel would prepare all of Lucas’s favorite foods that she learned to prepare just for him. They would play their favorite songs which reminded them of when they had first met, and they displayed images, photos and symbols of things that reminded them of their relationship.
They held these special parties to celebrate each event that memorialized something special that took place in their relationship as they would invite friends and family to participate with them. They would recall “the reason for the season,” and tell stories of when they first met, when they first kissed, when they first became engaged, and so on.
But as time went on, their relationship began to experience problems. Lucas did not display his faithfulness to Rachel as she had done to him. Rachel began to see changes in Lucas as he became addicted to video games and vampire movies which caused him to become withdrawn and have mood swings. She also noticed that Lucas flirted with other women in her presence and he would often become short- tempered and angry with her over petty things.
Rachel prayed for Lucas to change his ways, but she realized after two years of this, that Lucas was not the right man for her. She loved Lucas very much, but she knew that he was not the one whom the Heavenly Father had chosen for her to marry. Finally, after much heartache, Rachel had to make the decision to break things off with Lucas just one month before they were scheduled to get married on Easter Sunday 1993. Rachel’s family and friends were devastated because they all loved Lucas and they all enjoyed participating in the celebrations that Lucas and Rachel held in order to commemorate their love together.
After Rachel and Lucas broke up, Rachel no longer felt comfortable attending her old church, so she started to attend church less frequently. Her friends began to wonder why she was not in church each week. Rachel felt very sad and depressed about the fact that she had to break up with Lucas, and she knew that she would miss her old church family. But no matter how sad she felt, she did not want to go back to that dysfunctional relationship with Lucas again. Not too long after Rachel broke up with Lucas, she met a young woman at her job named Sarah who was a Messianic Jew. Sarah had begun to share the Hebraic Root’s of the Messianic faith with her. Rachel was reluctant at first to attend her Messianic Congregation but a year later, Rachel finally decided to attend a Passover Seder with her friend from work on March 27th 1994.
At this Passover Seder, Rachel met a young man named Joshua whom she really liked and they quickly became close friends. At this point, Rachel left her old church for good and she began to attend the Hebraic Root’s Messianic Congregation. Rachel and Joshua began to get to know one another by dating and talking on the phone every night. They studied the scriptures together every Sabbath Day and after the Sabbath was over they went out to eat on Saturday Nights.
At this Passover Seder, Rachel met a young man named Joshua whom she really liked and they quickly became close friends. At this point, Rachel left her old church for good and she began to attend the Hebraic Root’s Messianic Congregation. Rachel and Joshua began to get to know one another by dating and talking on the phone every night. They studied the scriptures together every Sabbath Day and after the Sabbath was over they went out to eat on Saturday Nights.
Later on that year, on May 16th 1994 was their Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) celebration at the congregation. At this celebration, there was lots of joyous music, dancing and Middle Eastern food. Rachel and Joshua had a wonderful time together that night as they became aware of the fact that perhaps Elohiym was putting them together for marriage. That was also the first time that they kissed each other and Joshua told Rachel that he loved her. Rachel cried as she felt joy in her heart at her new found love with Joshua.
Later on that year on September 6th 1994, Joshua and Rachel attended the Feast of Trumpets celebration at their congregation also called Yom Teruah. This was a special time for them because it was also Joshua’s 30th birthday. The entire congregation went out that night to a camp site where they could watch for the new moon, sit around a camp fire and sing worship songs. When they spotted the new moon they all began to sound their shofars. At this precise moment, Joshua slipped an engagement ring on Rachel’s finger as they looked up at the new moon.
Later on that year on September 6th 1994, Joshua and Rachel attended the Feast of Trumpets celebration at their congregation also called Yom Teruah. This was a special time for them because it was also Joshua’s 30th birthday. The entire congregation went out that night to a camp site where they could watch for the new moon, sit around a camp fire and sing worship songs. When they spotted the new moon they all began to sound their shofars. At this precise moment, Joshua slipped an engagement ring on Rachel’s finger as they looked up at the new moon.
As Rachel felt the ring go on her finger she began to cry and laugh at the same time. She and Joshua kissed and he whispered in her ear “please marry me, Rachel---I love you.” Rachel accepted and she replied with excitement “Yes, I will marry you Joshua!” Joshua picked her up off of the ground and swung her around as they hugged and shouted for joy in front of the congregation. Everyone in the congregation sounded their shofars again and cheered for the couple as they took videos and pictures of this special event.
Rachel and Joshua also celebrated Yom Kippur and the Feast of Tabernacles together that year at the same camp site with their congregation as they had many fond memories and laughs together. On the final night of the Feast of Tabernacles, Joshua told Rachel that he wanted to go away to Yisra’el to study Hebrew at the University in Jerusalem and he told her that he would be back in time for Passover in 1995.
He said to her “I am going away to prepare a place for you on my Father’s estate in Yisra’el, and when I come back next year on Passover, I want to celebrate our one year anniversary together of when we first met…and then let’s set a date to get married on the Feast of Tabernacles of 1995 in Yisra’el---okay?”
At this point, Rachel and Joshua made plans to be married one year later on the Feast of Tabernacles 1995 in Yisra’el. By the first week of October after the Fall Feasts in 1994, Joshua went away to Yisra’el to the Hebrew University while Rachel remained in the United States in their home state in Pennsylvania to plan their future wedding.
Joshua and Rachel talked to one another via email, telephone and webcam daily as they continued to develop their relationship. Joshua would periodically send Rachel emails to remind her to send out invitations for their one year anniversary party on Passover 1995. He asked her to learn to cook the lamb and the unleavened bread for when he came home for Passover the following year to celebrate their covenant with Messiah as well as their covenant with each other.
Rachel was also learning how to cook Joshua’s favorite meals as he informed her of what he liked and did not like to eat. Joshua’s taste in food was totally different than the kind of food Lucas enjoyed. But Rachel did not mind learning to cook differently for Joshua than she had for Lucas, because she really loved Joshua.
In the meantime, the anniversary date of when Lucas and Rachel had first met on October 31st was approaching. Rachel’s friends and family missed her very much and they wanted her to come back to their church. They still loved Lucas and so they secretly planned to get them back together again. They invited Rachel to a celebration at church for Halloween knowing that Joshua was away in Yisra’el. They figured that they could use this time to scheme to bring Rachel back together with Lucas again.
But Rachel did not know what they were planning to do, as they also invited Lucas to come to the celebration. Rachel’s friends told her that they were going to be celebrating her new engagement to Joshua, and she believed them. But when she arrived at the Halloween celebration, even though they were singing songs about Joshua, the food being served was Lucas’s favorite dishes, framed photos of Lucas & Rachel were all over the place, and other images and symbols of Lucas were attached to the celebration.
But Rachel did not know what they were planning to do, as they also invited Lucas to come to the celebration. Rachel’s friends told her that they were going to be celebrating her new engagement to Joshua, and she believed them. But when she arrived at the Halloween celebration, even though they were singing songs about Joshua, the food being served was Lucas’s favorite dishes, framed photos of Lucas & Rachel were all over the place, and other images and symbols of Lucas were attached to the celebration.
Rachel felt grieved in her heart because she realized that Joshua would be hurt if he found out that she was attending this celebration. But she also rationalized to herself “Josh will understand, he knows my heart, and besides it’s not the date that matters, what matters is that I am celebrating Joshua from my heart.”
When Lucas showed up to this October 31st celebration, he pretended to be happy about Joshua and Rachel getting together as he congratulated her on her engagement to Joshua. But secretly, Lucas was hoping to win Rachel back as he schemed together with her friends.
At the same time, Joshua had been informed by his friends that Rachel was planning to attend this church Halloween party. Rachel’s friends from her old church purposely tipped off one of Joshua’s friends that she was attending their Halloween party because they were hoping to sabotage her relationship with Joshua and thereby give Rachel an excuse to return to Lucas. Joshua quickly got on an airplane and came home for a surprise visit from Yisra’el, and when he arrived, he called Rachel’s cell phone to find out where she was. Rachel answered her cell phone and told him that she was at a church celebration. Joshua replied “what kind of celebration?” When she told him that she was celebrating October 31st as the date of their engagement, Joshua was very upset. Josh said “Wait…isn’t that the date that you and Lucas first met and dressed up as Sampson and Delilah?”
Rachel hesitated, “Yes, but don’t worry about the date, I am celebrating this date for you and me now.” Joshua showed up at the celebration and saw Lucas there. They were serving all of Lucas’s favorite foods, playing Lucas’ favorite music and their church friends displayed old photos of Rachel and Lucas dressed up as Sampson and Delilah when they had won that contest together.
Joshua was so upset that he left the celebration in tears. Rachel went running after him as she tried to rationalize to him: “But honey this was all for you....” But Joshua replied:
“Rachel, don’t give me that---October 31st means nothing to you and me! That is the anniversary date of when you and Lucas first met and won a costume contest together! And aside from the date, the food, the music, the photos, all of it reminded me of the fact that you used to be with Lucas.”
Rachel apologized to Joshua “I am so sorry honey, they tricked me and told me that we were celebrating the engagement of you and I together and I believed them. I had no idea that Lucas was coming or that they were going to have photos of me and Lucas together, and his favorite foods, music, etc.”
“Rachel, don’t give me that---October 31st means nothing to you and me! That is the anniversary date of when you and Lucas first met and won a costume contest together! And aside from the date, the food, the music, the photos, all of it reminded me of the fact that you used to be with Lucas.”
Rachel apologized to Joshua “I am so sorry honey, they tricked me and told me that we were celebrating the engagement of you and I together and I believed them. I had no idea that Lucas was coming or that they were going to have photos of me and Lucas together, and his favorite foods, music, etc.”
Joshua understood that Rachel did this all in ignorance and so he forgave her and all was forgotten. But he warned her not to attend any more of these celebrations with her old friends at church knowing that they were trying to get her back together with Lucas. Joshua went back to Yisra’el and he again reminded her “Remember, this coming Passover we are having a memorial of when we first met, right?”
Rachel agreed to get everything together with Joshua’s friends and family for the Passover to commemorate their covenant with Messiah, as well as when they first met the year before. Rachel had to forsake her own friends and family because they were all conspiring to get her back together with Lucas. Rachel told her friends and family that she still loved them and forgave them for lying to her, but she was going to celebrate the appointed dates that Joshua asked her to keep with him.
But in the meantime, Rachel’s friends and family apologized to her for conspiring to get her back together with Lucas. But their apology was not sincere. They conspired once again to bring Rachel and Lucas back together. After all, Lucas was one of the “Good ole’ boys from church” they told themselves, but this Joshua guy who was a Messianic Jew, they thought “He’s just too legalistic with all of these appointed dates he expects her to keep…”
They did not want to give up the celebrations and festivals that they had become accustomed to, so they decided to attach Joshua’s name to the dates that were formerly kept for Lucas and Rachel. That way they could convince Rachel to continue to keep them, thereby making Joshua upset and this would sabotage their relationship. What a brilliant plan they had!
Each time one of these special dates would come up that formerly meant something to Lucas, Rachel’s friends and family would invite her and they told her that they were sorry for trying to interfere with her relationship with Joshua. Now they were going out of their way to convince Rachel that they were truly celebrating Joshua on these appointed dates of Lucas. Rachel decided to attend the Christmas Party at her old church on December 25th even though she knew this was also Lucas’s birthday. They did all of this under the guise that this was going to once again be about Joshua.
They told her that they would let her show videos of Joshua’s trip to Yisra’el and photos of their Fall Feasts together in front of the entire church. She rationalized to herself :
“If I go to this party, I can show everyone at my old church the videos and pictures of Joshua and they will finally realize that I am with Joshua now and their efforts to get me back with Lucas are not going to work.”
This time, Joshua decided to show up again without her foreknowledge, as he had once again been informed by his friends that Rachel was planning to attend one of these appointed feasts of Lucas under the guise of it being for him.
Rachel did this willfully knowing that Joshua would be upset if he found out. But in her heart she continued to rationalize, “I am doing this for Joshua.” And so Joshua showed up to this December 25th celebration at Rachel’s old church and saw that her family and friends were treating this as a day for Joshua. Even though Rachel showed them pictures of her celebration of the Fall Feasts with Joshua, there were still vestiges of Lucas in the celebration. Once again, there were pictures of when Rachel & Lucas dressed up as Mary & Joseph for the live Nativity Scene two years earlier. Lucas’s favorite foods were being served, his favorite music, imagery and symbols that meant something to Lucas but not to Joshua.
After Rachel showed the videos and pictures of Joshua’s trip to Yisra’el, someone else from the church brought out videos of their Christmas production two years earlier where Rachel and Lucas were dressed up as Mary & Joseph and they were dancing together and kissing. Joshua walked in to this celebration just as they were showing these videos of Rachel & Lucas.
After Rachel showed the videos and pictures of Joshua’s trip to Yisra’el, someone else from the church brought out videos of their Christmas production two years earlier where Rachel and Lucas were dressed up as Mary & Joseph and they were dancing together and kissing. Joshua walked in to this celebration just as they were showing these videos of Rachel & Lucas.
This time, when Joshua showed up to the celebration, he rebuked Rachel and he was very angry. Rachel once again tried to rationalize that she was doing it for him. But Joshua said to her: “I am forbidding you to celebrate anymore of these dates that commemorate Lucas, do you hear me?! If you celebrate one more of these Lucas days under the guise of it being for me, our relationship is over!”
Rachel began crying uncontrollably as she rationalized to Joshua: “But I was showing them videos of your trip to Yisra’el! I was doing this all for you honey! I wanted them to finally get the hint that I am not ever going back to Lucas!”
But Joshua said to her: “Rachel, that is not the point! I already warned you last time when you attended that Halloween party back on October 31st not to attend any more of these celebrations with your friends that are supposed to be about me but they are secretly about you and Lucas!”
Now Rachel was growing bitter towards Joshua as she felt that she had to choose between her friends and family or Joshua and his friends and family. Rachel felt that she should be able to celebrate both the appointed times that Joshua asked her to keep, but also the appointed times that her friends and family wanted to keep under the guise of doing it for Joshua.
Rachel began to say to herself “What difference do all of these dates make? What really matters is that I love Joshua right? Why can’t I decide for myself when I want to plan dates to celebrate my love for Joshua? Why does he have to be the one to tell me when he wants to celebrate these appointed dates?”
Now Joshua gave her one more warning and said to her “If you attend any more of these special celebration dates of you and Lucas, our wedding is off---do you hear me?!”
Joshua went back to Yisra’el, but before he left he said to Rachel:
“This coming Passover is the one year anniversary of when we first met and I want to you to get ready by baking unleavened desserts and bread. I want us to celebrate our one year anniversary of when we first met, so please don’t let me down, Rachel. Please get all of our friends and family together for Passover & Unleavened Bread---promise?”
Rachel agreed to get everything ready for Passover but she was beginning to become bitter in her heart towards Joshua as she thought he was being a “legalist.” She began saying to herself:
“…My friends and family are right about him, he is way too legalistic....I should be allowed to go to these Lucas celebrations and take back the day for Joshua.”
Joshua once again went back to Yisra’el but while he was away, Rachel attended the Valentine’s Day dance at her former church where her friends and family displayed pictures of Rachel and Lucas dancing together two years earlier. Rachel had no respect for how Joshua felt. She thought she should be allowed to celebrate these dates that commemorated her and Lucas’s old relationship together all the while rationalizing in her heart that she was doing these celebrations with Joshua in mind.
One of Joshua’s friends named Caleb followed Rachel to the church to spy on her for Joshua. Joshua’s friend Caleb remained“incognito” and did not let Rachel know he was there. Caleb called Joshua on the phone and told Joshua that Rachel was at her old church celebrating Valentine’s Day. Joshua decided this time to say nothing to her. He decided instead to fast and pray for his beloved that she would repent. He waited to see if she would confess to him that she dishonored him by going to another one of these Lucas celebrations at church.
Joshua wanted to give her one more chance. He wanted to see if she would get everything together for Passover when he came home from Yisra’el. Rachel had plenty of time to go shopping for the Passover, and Unleavened Bread celebrations. Joshua rationalized to himself:
“I know she is all alone in my absence, therefore, I can understand that she misses her old friends and family. However, once we get married (and we move to Yisra’el), things will be different. Those church people will be out of her life for good, and her heart will be faithful to me at last.”
Rachel had not been attending the Hebraic Root’s Messianic Congregation as regularly as she had been before. She would often sleep in on the Sabbath days and only attend once in a while. Rachel was beginning to lose touch with Joshua’s friends and family and she was not even trying to get things ready in time for Passover.
When Passover had arrived that following April, Joshua came home from Yisra’el fully expecting that Rachel would have everything ready to celebrate the one year anniversary of when they had first met. Joshua was very excited to celebrate with the woman he loved. Joshua could not wait to enjoy Rachel’s home cooking as she would be preparing all of his favorite foods. But instead, Rachel had not prepared one bit.
That year in 1995, Easter Sunday fell on April 15th and Passover fell the next day on April 16th. Rachel’s friends invited her to come to the Easter production at church and celebrate with them and to watch Lucas sing in the Easter play. She had been so busy celebrating the holidays that were important to Lucas that she had no time to prepare the Passover as Joshua had asked her to do. She had completely forgotten to go out and buy the ingredients to make the Unleavened Bread, lamb and desserts.
Now, this was the final blow for Joshua. He was completely devastated that this woman whom he thought was going to be his bride had no respect for him what-so-ever.
Not only had she continued to celebrate the appointed times of Lucas while pretending that it was really for him, but now she defiantly disobeyed him and did not even prepare for the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread celebrations that he had asked her to prepare!
In this story, Lucas represents Satan (Lucifer), Rachel represents the Christian Church, and Joshua represents Yahuwshuwa (who many know as Jesus). When Rachel continued in the appointed feasts of Lucas, (out of ignorance) Joshua forgave her and he understood that she did not know better. However, when Rachel persisted in celebrating the appointed dates of Lucas (even after she knew full well that it would hurt Joshua), he gave her fair warning not to do it again or he would have to call off their relationship and wedding.
But the final blow came when she disregarded an important date that Joshua was so looking forward to celebrating with her. She had already attended several of the celebrations of Lucas on the appointed dates that she and Lucas had formerly kept and now she did not love Joshua enough to keep his appointed feasts.
Can anyone blame Joshua if he breaks up with Rachel now? What do you think?
To all of those in the Christian Church who say things like “God is not hung up on dates” or “God knows my heart” or “It does not matter what date I celebrate Jesus, as long as I celebrate him.”
Satan has had his counterfeit Messiah’s since the time of Nimrod at the Tower of Babel. All throughout the Bible we see YaHuWaH Elohiym being angry with Yisra’el because they were always forsaking him and going after these same pagan gods from Babylon and Egypt. In the scriptures below, Yah tells his people not to learn and imitate the same worship customs of the heathen and then use the same styles of worship for him:
Debariym (Deuteronomy) 12:
30 Take heed to yourself that you be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before you; and that you enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
Satan has had his counterfeit Messiah’s since the time of Nimrod at the Tower of Babel. All throughout the Bible we see YaHuWaH Elohiym being angry with Yisra’el because they were always forsaking him and going after these same pagan gods from Babylon and Egypt. In the scriptures below, Yah tells his people not to learn and imitate the same worship customs of the heathen and then use the same styles of worship for him:
Debariym (Deuteronomy) 12:
30 Take heed to yourself that you be not snared by following them, after that they be destroyed from before you; and that you enquire not after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods? even so will I do likewise.
31 You shall not do so unto YHWH your Elohiym: for every abomination to YHWH, which he hates, have they done unto their gods; for even their sons and their daughters they have burnt in the fire to their gods.
The heathen placed their infants into the arms of a bright red burning statue of “Chemosh,” the god of prosperity! They also placed into his arms a “wish list” and they believed that if they offered up their children to this pagan god, they would receive the items on that wish list! Christians may not be literally burning their children alive, but if they cause their children to become idolaters by idolizing Santa (which is actually Satan), they could be sending their children to the Lake of Fire in the future!
To read more about the true identity of Santa Claus, see my other article entitled: “Santa Claus or Satan Claus?”
Ma’aseh Shlichiym (Acts) 7:43 Yea, you took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which you made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.
Pictured below is what the image of Moloch looks like. It is a bright red burning furnace stoked with wood underneath. The heathen burn their children alive in the arms of this statue at the winter solstice on December 25th!
Ma’aseh Shlichiym (Acts) 7:43 Yea, you took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and the star of your god Remphan, figures which you made to worship them: and I will carry you away beyond Babylon.
Pictured below is what the image of Moloch looks like. It is a bright red burning furnace stoked with wood underneath. The heathen burn their children alive in the arms of this statue at the winter solstice on December 25th!
Amowc (Amos) 5:21 I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies.
Amowc (Amos) 5:22 Though you offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them: neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat beasts.
Amowc (Amos) 5:23 Take you away from me the noise of your songs; for I will not hear the melody of your viols.
Amowc (Amos) 5:24 But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream.
Amowc (Amos) 5:25 Have you offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Yisra’el?
Amowc (Amos) 5:25 Have you offered unto me sacrifices and offerings in the wilderness forty years, O house of Yisra’el?
Amowc (Amos) 5:27 Therefore will I cause you to go into captivity beyond Damascus, says YHWH, whose name is The Elohiym of hosts.
Eight Pagan Sabbaths that Commemorate Ba’al Each Year
What were these holidays that YaHuWaH hated in Amos 5:21? What caused him to send them away into captivity? Ever since the Tower of Babel, these same pagan holidays were kept on these specific dates that are shown in the chart below. We can see that there are eight pagan Sabbaths that the witches and occultists keep for Ba’al or Satan. The Pagan Solar Wheel is sectioned out into eight sections like a pie. At two of the solstices (winter and summer) and at two of the equinoxes (spring and fall) are dates that commemorate the time when the nation of Yisra’el went whoring after the same pagan deities as the surrounding nations did.
These same pagan holidays were later on “repackaged, recycled and renamed” to appear as holidays to celebrate “Jesus Christ” by Rome. In this story, Rachel wanted to celebrate the holidays that commemorated her former lover Lucas (symbolizing Lucifer). She tried to rationalize that she was doing all of this for Joshua (symbolizing Jesus), but he was not happy about this at all. This is exactly what the Christian Church has done today and they think that our Messiah Yahuwshuwa (Joshua) does not mind! They have no idea how much this hurts him when his beloved bride is unfaithful to him and she wants to go back to her former lover’s important feast days! What are these feast days?
These same pagan holidays were later on “repackaged, recycled and renamed” to appear as holidays to celebrate “Jesus Christ” by Rome. In this story, Rachel wanted to celebrate the holidays that commemorated her former lover Lucas (symbolizing Lucifer). She tried to rationalize that she was doing all of this for Joshua (symbolizing Jesus), but he was not happy about this at all. This is exactly what the Christian Church has done today and they think that our Messiah Yahuwshuwa (Joshua) does not mind! They have no idea how much this hurts him when his beloved bride is unfaithful to him and she wants to go back to her former lover’s important feast days! What are these feast days?
February 2nd- 15th
2.) Ostara: Easter; Rome changed it to Passover week to identify her with Messiah’s Resurrection;
March 21st-25th
3.) Beltane: Mayfest; the “Queen of Heaven” Semiramis the goddess of fertility renamed as the
Catholic Mary; May 1st
4.) Midsummer Solstice: First Day of Summer; June 21st (Catholics call it St. John’s Day).
5.) Lugnasad: Catholic Mary’s Ascension; August 1st -August 15th
6.) Mabon: First Day of Autumn; September 21st
7.) Samhain: Halloween; Catholic “All-Saints Day” or “All-Souls Day” October 31st
8.) Yule: Christmas; Birthday of false Christ: December 21st -December 25th
Ancient Yisra’el did the same thing to YaHuWaH Elohiym that Rachel did to Joshua in this story. He was patient with her and gave her many chances to amend her ways. He even went away to Yisra’el to prepare a place for her on his Father’s estate. But she was ungrateful, unrepentant and rebellious. Finally, in Yirmeyahuw (Jeremiah) 3:8, YaHuWaH wrote Yisra’el a divorce decree and sent her away to the nations for her harlotry and backsliding.
Has anything changed in today’s Christian Church today?
“Obedience is better than sacrifice” (1st Samuel 15:22). While Christians brag on the fact that they “lift up holy hands and worship the Creator with intimacy,” they often times criticize the Jewish people and the other Yisra’elite Tribes who keep the Sabbath days and YaHuWaH’s appointed feasts. They call it “legalism” but who really loves YaHuWaH? Those who obey? Or those who sacrifice?
The Feasts of YaHuWaH are like an “engagement ring” showing the world who we are in covenant with! If you are keeping pagan holidays, you are in covenant with the Papacy and Mystery Babylon the Great, the Mother of all Harlots! (Revelation 17:5). But if you are in Covenant with the Creator of the Universe and the Elohiym of Abraham, Yitzchaq (Isaac) and Ya’aqob (Jacob), then you will wear the “sign” of the covenant on your right hand and upon your forehead!
The Feasts of YaHuWaH are like an “engagement ring” showing the world who we are in covenant with! If you are keeping pagan holidays, you are in covenant with the Papacy and Mystery Babylon the Great, the Mother of all Harlots! (Revelation 17:5). But if you are in Covenant with the Creator of the Universe and the Elohiym of Abraham, Yitzchaq (Isaac) and Ya’aqob (Jacob), then you will wear the “sign” of the covenant on your right hand and upon your forehead!
In other words, our hands represent our “works” or our deeds. The “frontlets between the eyes” are the “forehead” and this means our minds, our will. If we have the “mind of Messiah” we will desire to keep his commandments.
HAND = WORKS, DEEDS
FOREHEAD = OUR THOUGHTS, OUR MIND
Shemoth (Exodus) 31:
13 Speak you also unto the children of Yisra’el, saying,Verily my sabbaths you shall keep: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that you may know that I am YHWH that does sanctify you.
14 You shall keep the sabbath therefore; for it is holy unto you: every one that defiles it shall surely be put to death: for whosoever does any work therein, that soul shall be cut off from among his people.
15 Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to YHWH: whosoever does any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.
16 Wherefore the children of Yisra’el shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant.
17 It is a sign between me and the children of Yisra’el forever: for in six days YHWH made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.
Yechezqel (Ezekiel) 20:12 Moreover also I gave them sabbaths, to be a sign between me and them, that they might know that I am YHWH that sanctify them.
Yechezqel (Ezekiel) 20:20 And hallow sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that you may know that I am YHWH your Elohiym.
In all of the above verses, the word for “sign” in the Hebrew Concordance is as follows:
On the day of Pentecost (called Shabuoth in Hebrew) the believers received the “seal” of the Holy Spirit which is also called the “Law of the Spirit of Life” (Romans 8:2). This means that the Torah is written in our hearts and minds by the Holy Spirit. The commandments have been transferred from stone tablets into “fleshy tables of the heart” (2nd Corinthians 3:3).
The “seal” of the Holy Spirit that YaHuWaH places on his elect is a “down- payment” or an “engagement ring” if you will. The word for “seal” in the following verses is as follows in the Hebrew:
#2368 chowtham kho-thawm or chotham {kho-thawm}; from 2856; a signature-ring:--seal, signet.
Shir ha’Shiriym (Song of Solomon) 8:6 Set me as a seal upon your heart, as a seal upon your arm for love is strong as death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals thereof are coals of fire, which has a most vehement flame.
Yeshayahuw (Isaiah) 8:16 Bind up the testimony, seal the Torah (law) among my disciples.
Also in the Briyth Chadashah (New Testament) there are other recurring themes about the “seal” of the Holy Spirit which can be seen in the following verses:
Yahuwchanon (John) 3:33 He that has received his testimony has set to his seal that Elohiym is true.
Yahuwchanon (John) 6:27 Labour not for the meat which perishes, but for that meat which endures unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him has Elohiym the Father sealed.
2nd Corinthians 1:22 Who has also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts.
Ephesians 1:13 In whom you also trusted, after that you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that you believed, you were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise.
Ephesians 4:30 And grieve not the holy Spirit of Elohiym, whereby you are sealed unto the day of redemption.
2nd Timothy 2:19 Nevertheless the foundation of Elohiym stands sure, having this seal, YHWH knows them that are his. And, let everyone that names the name of Messiah depart from iniquity.
The same meaning to this word “seal” is also seen in the Greek Concordance as meaning the same thing as in the Hebrew. It means “signet ring” or a “mark:”
#4972. sphragizo sfrag-id-zo from 4973; to stamp (with a signet private mark) for security or preservation (literally or figuratively); by implication, to keep secret, to attest:--(set a, set to) seal up, stop.
#4973. sphragis sfrag-ece probably strengthened from 5420; a signet (as fencing in or protecting from misappropriation); by implication, the stamp impressed (as a mark of privacy or genuineness), literally or figuratively:--seal.
The elect have their names written in the right hand of the Lamb who sits on the throne:
Revelation 5:1 And I saw the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
The Seven Seals are the Seven Feasts of YaHuWaH!
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