That’s in the Bible Archives

What are the Ten Commandments in the Bible?

Charlton Heston playing Moses in the Ten Commandments movie

To some, the Ten Commandments is a just a movie produced back in 1956 starring actor Charlton Heston as Moses. But where are the actual initial Ten Commandments recorded? Where did they come from? To whom were they given? And most importantly, do they apply to us today? Here are some biblical answers:

What are the initial Ten Commandments in the Bible?

According to Exodus 20:1-17 and Deuteronomy 5:7-21, this is what is written:

You shall have no other gods before Me.
Do not make and worship any graven image.
You shall not use God’s name in vain.
Remember the Sabbath.
Honor your father and mother.
You shall not murder.
You shall not commit adultery.
You shall not steal.
You shall not lie.
You shall not be envious of your neighbor.

Who received the Ten Commandments?

According to Exodus 31:18, God Himself wrote the commandments on two stone tablets and gave them to Moses after speaking with him at Mount Sinai.

Who were the Ten Commandments for?

In Exodus 19:3 & 5 and Deuteronomy 5:3, God gave these commandments to the Israelites that He brought out of Egypt as conditions in order to be His people. God commanded Moses to tell this to the people of Israel: “If you will obey Me and keep My covenant, you will be My own people.”

Do the Ten Commandments still apply today?

The Ten Commandments were given during the time of the prophets, but today we live in a completely different era: The Christian Era. There are commandments specifically for us in this era. We can read that in Hebrews 7:12, 22: “For the priesthood being changed, of necessity there is also a change of the law…. by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant.”

But as long as there is no explicit, clear and obvious change of a law prescribed in the Old Testament by a later instruction given in the New Testament, then that law is still applicable to us now.

Are there only ten commandments to follow?

While the scene in the movie may be memorable, what’s most important is understanding God’s motive in choosing a group of people as His nation. He gave them not just ten, but many more instructions to live by in the Bible, and their obedience meant that they acknowledged Him as the true God.

Learn more about how God’s words can be relevant in your life. Set up a time to speak with a minister of the gospel.

Does God Love Everyone Unconditionally?

If God’s love is unconditional, why is the Bible filled with conditions? Will God love me if I’m spiritual but not religious?

What Does Celebrating Easter Say About You?

Easter is considered a fun and widely accepted holiday, but should you celebrate this tradition? What is Easter and what does it mean? How did Easter start and what is the real story behind Easter?

Show/Hide Transcript

Brother Bob Pellien: Thank you all very much! Welcome! Welcome! Welcome everyone to this program That’s in the Bible Live today.

I’m Brother Bob Pellien and we thank you all for joining us today, being our studio audience. We are very thankful, as well, to all those who will be watching this recorded broadcast later on in various Church mediums like Direct TV, incmedia.org, INCTV America, and several others.

Now those who have been tuning into our program on a regular basis, you know already that in this show, That’s in the Bible, we explore the Bible’s teaching on many topics. Topics relating to salvation and relating to proper service to God.

Today’s topic:

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What Does Celebrating Easter Say About You?

Brother Bob: If you’re celebrating Easter, you’re probably one of three types of people. You may be like the first: you’re fully aware of everything about Easter, you’re aware of the origins of the Easter holiday, and, for you, it’s really nothing that you’re too concerned about.

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1 – You’re fully aware of the origins of this holiday and it’s really nothing that you’re too concerned about.

Brother Bob: Or you might be the second type of person. Maybe it could be described like whether or not you know the origins, or you really know the history of Easter in the essence of this holiday for you, but it’s just fun, right?

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2 – Whether or not you know its origins or history, in essence the holiday is just a fun thing to participate in.

Brother Bob: It’s nice to participate in the various traditions of Easter. Or you might be a third kind of person. You maybe don’t know much yet about Easter or the origins of the various Easter traditions, but you are interested to find out.

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3 – You don’t know much about Easter or the origins of its traditions, but are interested to find out.

Brother Bob: We challenge you. We ask you today to fit yourself into one of those personas as we go on in our study together. Our That’s in the Bible team went out right here in the San Francisco Bay trail. They gathered some video interviews of real people just talking about how they celebrate Easter. I’m very sure that many of the things that you’re about to hear may seem very familiar to you. Let’s take a moment and look.

[Video Starts]

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Do you celebrate Easter?

Interviewee 1: We celebrate Easter every year.

Interviewee 2: Personally, my husband and I don’t really celebrate it.

Interviewee 3: I celebrate it at church and with my family.

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How do you celebrate Easter?

Interviewee 4: I celebrate it with the family. That’s the most important thing. So friends and stuff like that little most important family.

Interviewee 2: I don’t celebrate Easter by going to church, but I certainly do plan Easter egg hunts for my kids.

Interviewee 1: I not only celebrate Easter at church, but I also celebrate with my family.

Interviewee 4: You know, of course the Easter egg basket though

traditional stuff, but some of us go to church. Some don’t. Then we just get together and just eat and have a good time and celebrate.

Interviewee 3: Last year I did little goodie bags [that] said ‘Jesus is alive.’

Interviewee 5: Being Christian I go to church and put my family together. We pray. But of course, being here in Western country you have to do what kids like. So egg hunt for the kids!

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How do you prepare for Easter?

Interviewee 1: Well before that is Lent, I believe, and you’re supposed to give up stuff for Lent.

Interviewee 3: And as far as 40, the Lent thing, I grew up Catholic so I kind of used to do that but I didn’t really understand it.

Interviewee 1: I was going to give up sweets or something this year, but anyway, not really good at giving up anything.

Interviewee 2: We just try to say, “Hey, remember you celebrated Easter,” but not really opening up a Bible or something to explain to them what it is because we ourselves are not very educated in that area.

Interviewee 3: My family does that. It kind of kicks off the 40 days before Easter, which is the day Jesus rose from the dead.

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What do you know about Easter?

Interviewee 2: So I don’t know. It’s just happy, fun, bunnies and stuff. Where I grew up from…grew up at and I’m not Christian so we were not educated

with it.

Interviewee 3: I think it’s just mostly [a] time of just really reflecting on the reason why all this was happening and who Jesus was.

Interviewee 2: We still try to educate them [on] what it what it is. It’s not all about candy, right? But we certainly try to make it fun.

Interviewee 3: I’ve had funny stories like I’ve taught Sunday school on Easter, and we’ve asked the kids, like, “Where did the Easter eggs come from?” And one kid said, “Jesus laid them,” which is really funny, but, we had to tell them what the meaning was behind that. It’s just all symbolism, but what does it really mean? it just means new life that, you know, Jesus died so that we can live again with him.

[Video Ends]

Brother Bob: So there you go, a full spectrum of ideas and perceptions of about Easter and how to celebrate it, and things like that, right? Now whether or not you celebrate Easter for its religious aspect, as you heard a couple of them say, or you’re just into it because well, it’s family fun time.

As we saw, there’s a lot of ways to celebrate Easter being undertaken in the world nowadays. So what does celebrating Easter—back to our original question right? What does celebrating Easter, what does it really say about you?

Easter symbols, traditions, and practices

Brother Bob: What we will do is briefly go over a few of the popular symbols, or let’s call them traditions, practices of this holiday called Easter. Let’s first start with the term itself—Easter. You might be surprised about the meaning of that term. According to the New Catholic Encyclopedia, let’s take a moment to read what is recorded here on on page 6:

Since Bede the Venerable (De ratione temporum 1:5) “the origin of the term for the feast of Christ’s Resurrection has been popularly considered to be from the Anglo-Saxon Eastre, a goddess of spring.

[New Catholic Encyclopedia Vol 5 Page 6]

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Pagan Fertility Goddess

Ishtar (Babylonian)

Ashtaroth (Hebrew)

Astarte (Greek)

Eastre (Anglo-Saxon)

Easter (English)

Brother Bob: Easter was also known to the Babylonians and others as Ishtar, Easter, and other similar names in ancient religions, all connected to what is now been Christian-ized into mainstream Christianity today.

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“Easter” – goddess of Fertility

Rabbit – Symbol of Fertility

Brother Bob: What’s another tradition of Easter? They said it on the video. Easter eggs.

Audience: Eggs.

Brother Bob: And bunnies.

Audience : Bunnies.

Brother Bob: Easter eggs and Easter bunnies. By the way, just a little side biological note, bunnies don’t lay eggs. They’re mammals. But that’s another whole discussion.

Easter Bunny, Easter eggs, and the symbols all of those kinds of symbols, which are quite synonymous with the Easter holiday. In this Catholic Dictionary on page 169, what is noted here regarding those traditions like Easter eggs, Easter baskets, and things like that, it’s not of course into Holy Scripture. So, where then, what then, is it all about? Take note:

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Easter eggs may possibly be a “baptized” pagan custom, since they are an obvious symbol of fertility, and many places it is still the practice to paint the eggs and bring them to church and decorated baskets for a blessing before or after mass. Chocolate eggs and such like-fooleries are a degeneration of no significance.

[A Catholic Dictionary Page 169]

Brother Bob: That is the official book of Roman Catholicism. These things are from what origin? The Bible? No, they are from pagan origins. But what’s paganism in the first place? What’s the big deal? That’s what a lot of people say. “Pagan. So what?” Can we say so what? What do we need to understand about paganism? What is a pagan? Here’s one definition. You can see it on the screen from dictionary.cambridge.org. The Cambridge Dictionary says:

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paganism

noun

a religion that worships many gods, especially a religion that existed before the main world religions

Brother Bob: Easter bunny, Easter egg, the Easter goddess of fertility from the Babylonian goddess of fertility, Easter, Ishtar, those are ancient pagan gods and goddesses that come not from the Bible.

What does it say, then? I pose this question to everyone: what does it say about anyone who is okay with that? In the New Encyclopedia Britannica and on page 605, what do they have to say about some of these origins of various Easter traditions? I quote:

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As at Christmas, so also at Easter, popular customs reflect many ancient pagan survivals-in this instance, connected with Spring fertility rites, such as the symbols of the Easter egg, and the Easter hare or rabbit.

[New Encyclopedia Britannica MACROPEDIA, 15th Edition, Vol 4 Page 605]

Brother Bob: So the Easter egg [and] the Easter rabbit are symbols of spring fertility rites used in ancient pagan worship to ancient goddesses of fertility, not anything that has to do with Jesus and His death and resurrection whatsoever.

Lent

Brother Bob: Everyone has heard about Lent, and, a couple of those that we interviewed outside here on the trail, as you saw [in] the video, they spoke about the 40 days of Lent. We all know that it’s the 40 days of fasting done in the Catholic Church in preparation for Easter. In the Catholic Encyclopedia on page 69. This important statement was made:

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No distinct traces of the quadragesimal observance are discernible until the fourth century. The decrees of the Council of Nicea in 325 contain the earliest mention of Lent.

[The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol 1 Page 69]

Brother Bob: A popular 40 day period prior to Easter is called what, studio audience?

Audience: Lent?

Brother Bob: How many days is it?

Audience: 40.

Brother Bob: 40. It was invented in the Bible. It was instructed to be done in the Bible. True or false?

Audience: False.

Brother Bob: Where did it come from, then? Lent is not a biblical instruction. It was made up, as you saw me read from the Catholic book. The Catholic Church invented it—brought it into use. What century? Fourth century. And what year? 325 AD at the Council of Nicea.

And to learn more about these and in greater depth thorough detail, we would like to recommend checking out INCMedia.org/easter. You can learn more about the history of Lent, many things about Lent, more things about the Easter traditions themselves, the Holy Week, stations of the Cross and all that leading up to Easter and the various celebrated practices and traditions of each one of them relative to what the Bible actually says about them.

Everyone should become very well educated about all the history of those things, but here right now, knowing—that was just some highlights, right? Knowing where Easter truly came from and where the traditions really came from, out of the three types of people, then, which type of person are you? Are you persona number one? You knew these things already, but to you, “No big deal. I like chocolate.”

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1 – You’re fully aware of the origins of this holiday and it’s really nothing that you’re too concerned about.

Brother Bob: Or maybe your persona number two.

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2 – Whether or not you know its origins or history, in essence the holiday is just a fun thing to participate in.

Brother Bob: You didn’t know these things before. You didn’t know that it was rooted in a history of service to Ishtar, Babylonian goddess of fertility. Her symbols were the egg and the rabbit. “I didn’t know that.” But even after learning it here now, it’s not really too concerning of an issue. It’s not really going to “pull at your heartstrings”, as the saying goes. Or you are person number three?

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3 – You don’t know much about Easter or the origins of its traditions, but are interested to find out.

Brother Bob: Now that you know that its practices are not from the Bible, but instead from ancient worship to pagan gods, you are very concerned about that, and you would like to know what is actually written in the Holy Scriptures so as to properly commemorate the death and the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Are you one, two or three type of a person? If you are a person number one or two, you are definitely entitled to your way of thinking. That is your right and we respect everyone. But if you are the third type of person, we share with you now, today, what the Bible actually teaches to protect us, and to keep us from straying away from God, our Creator.

Today, we turn to the Bible, inside the Church Of Christ. We are guided by the Bible only to know what is right and wrong, good and bad for us to do and to know what is acceptable to God when it comes to our service to Him. The Bible is the sole basis of our faith.

What does the Bible say about Easter?

Brother Bob: So having said all that, let’s take a look together right now at the things the Bible actually does say, or more importantly does not say about Easter.

Most Christian-professing religions consider this to be the most sacred of seasons. Easter, for many, is the one holiday of the year they strive to be religious. What did they do? Well, they probably gather up the families for a special meal, they participate in various traditions, like we heard from the interviews that we did, and from the history and we all know the Easter baskets and all those kinds of things.

As we look at the following Bible verses I asked you then to consider evaluating your own self. Should we all go hide easter eggs? Should we? Should we color the egg? Should we make chocolate Easter bunnies? I can’t believe I’m saying something against chocolate again. Here I go. Do all those things and say maybe “It’s fun. It’s enjoyable. The kids are happy. What’s wrong with that?” The children may like it. And isn’t it true, those of us who are parents, isn’t it nice to see your children happy? What parent doesn’t want that?

But what does the LORD Himself say about adopting these practices, which, by the way, as we’ve been saying, have their origins in paganism which remember is the worship to ancient gods and goddesses. What does the Lord say about that?

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paganism

noun

a religion that worships many gods, especially a religion that existed before the main world religions

Brother Bob: It doesn’t have anything to do with worship to God nor in remembrance of the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. So what then is the instruction of the LORD exactly? All right, let’s get to it. Jeremiah the prophet, Chapter 10, verse 2:

Thus says the Lord, “Do not learn the way of the [pagan] nations, …

[Jeremiah 10:2 Amplified BIble]

Brother Bob: That’s a very clear directive, “Do not learn the way of the pagan nations…” But not only have people learned them, they have learned them and incorporated them into their culture, incorporated them into their practices. And they call it service to the LORD in remembrance of Christ. No, no, no pagan ways are from the Catholic Church. People are practicing them with all kinds of enthusiasm. But what is it that the LORD said? You saw it on the screen.

Thus says the Lord, “Do not learn the way of the [pagan] nations, …

[Jeremiah 10:2 Amplified Bible]

Brother Bob: Don’t do it. And as we’re discussing many may want to respond to say that, “Those details about pagan roots and all that, that’s not important, right?” You know, “It’s okay if we ignore—let’s not just pay attention to the roots of those practices, their origins, as long as we have good intentions and we’re trying to do it in our service to the LORD, right?” That would be the mindset of a lot of people.

Are there any biblical principles or expectations of God that we can read here in the Holy Scriptures that have to be considered when answering that question?

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Brother Bob Pellien | Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: Let’s just say right out absolutely, yes. And here’s one of them. Exodus chapter 20:

“You shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God,…

[Exodus 20:3-5 New International Version]

Brother Bob: God gave a very clear and definitive answer, did He not? He said, “Don’t have any other gods, don’t make any image of them, and don’t bow down. I’m a jealous God.” That’s not safe then to do that, because God said he would be jealous. Why? Because they’re replacing Him with [a] pagan goddess. They’re replacing God. And of course, you would be saddened by being replaced by another, which, what’s the very meaning of the word “jealousy”? Being sad because you have been replaced by another.

“But wait!”, you may say, you know, “You mean to say that the practices of Easter wouldn’t constitute the replacement of God, would it?” Yes! Clearly that would not be okay with the Lord.

What then is essential and a real element of Easter that one should consider before you will entertain the idea of applying Easter practices and then say, “It’s my intent to give honor to God. It’s my intent to give honor to His son, our Lord Jesus Christ”? The celebration is an obvious service to another God, in that God’s name was Easter name for the goddess Easter.

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Pagan Fertility Goddess

Ishtar (Babylonian)

Ashtaroth (Hebrew)

Astarte (Greek)

Eastre (Anglo-Saxon)

Easter (English)

Brother Bob: And that’s not in the Bible. Dear friends, that’s what is called idolatry, worship to false gods or goddesses. And that’s what God does not allow, of course.

What then, I pose this question, what does it say about you if you don’t care about that? Do you care about what God cares about? God will not tolerate, then, any service to other gods or other goddesses like Easter, the Babylonian goddess. That’s very clear. But many still believe that all of this is truly harmless. It’s truly harmless.

Isn’t it possible to just say traditions like the Easter Bunny, it’s just for fun. It’s just for the children and it’s really harmless. Can we say that? These things may not be in the Bible. Many would say, “I know it’s not biblical, but surely the LORD would accept them as a service to Him. It’s not as a worship to Him, right?”

We can’t answer that, but God Himself gives a profound answer about that and it was mentioned and recorded here. I quote Matthew. I quote the Bible once again, Matthew chapter 15, verse 9:

And in vain they worship Me, Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’“

[Matthew 15:9 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: What did it say about their worship? It’s vain, it’s useless. But can’t we just overlook the pagan origins of these things and just let it be enjoyed? Why dig into the roots and details about all these things and read God’s responses in the Holy Scriptures?

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What if Easter is just for fun and not a form of worship?

Brother Bob: “What if my personal celebration of Easter is just for fun and what if I don’t even mean it as a form of worship?” I know. That question continues to be asked by a lot of people, but here’s the thing, we can’t just ignore warnings. Consider that. I’m going to repeat it. We cannot just ignore warnings given to us in the Holy Scriptures. “Warning? What warning?”

Let’s let’s take a look at an example. This is mentioned here by Apostle Paul in Colossians chapter 2, verse 8. “Beware.” What’s the meaning of that word, by the way, “Beware”—it’s already announcing what? Danger, right? “Beware! Watch out!”—

Beware, lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.

[Colossians 2:8 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: What was the warning? The warning was about traditions that are not rooted in Christ. The traditions of Easter are not rooted in Christ, they are rooted in paganism. So the Bible is giving a warning about that, we can’t just ignore the warning.

If there’s danger and you proceed to the danger, whose fault is it then if you get hurt, right? Since Christ did not give any instructions about Easter practices, we’re not going along with the whims of traditions, especially since traditions came from pagan service to false gods.

But, this is important also, this isn’t to say that all family traditions are bad. There is a specific kind of tradition that we are instructed to avoid above any other. What is that? That’s called a prohibited tradition. Jesus Himself spoke of it in these terms. I’d like to read from the book of Matthew chapter 15 verse 3:

Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition?”

[Matthew 15:3 New International Version]

Brother Bob: What kind of a tradition is bad? A tradition that goes against the commands of God. Christians are cautioned not to observe sinful traditions that break God’s laws, break God’s commandments.

Some of you may say your families wouldn’t understand you if you choose not to observe a holiday with them like that. What if your excuse would be that, “Well, my family celebrates Easter and they gather up together, and the children are given Easter eggs and Easter baskets. And there’s chocolate bunnies for everybody. And it’s just a big family happy gathering. And they’re not going to understand if I will say, ‘I’m not going to join in the normal family Easter traditions.’ And in fact, they will get angry with me. They might even ostracize me from the family.”

The apostles give any important advice to anyone that may find themselves in that kind of a situation, that kind of a circumstance. Well, yes, absolutely. I’ll read that from the writings of Apostle Paul to the Colossians 2:16:

“So don’t let anyone condemn you for what you eat or drink, or for not celebrating certain holy days or new moon ceremonies or Sabbaths.”

[Colossians 2:16 New Living Translation]

Brother Bob: So, dear friends, if [you’re] joining us in our program, be it in our studio audience or anyone watching and INCMedia.org, or any of the other outlets wherein this program shall be broadcast, if you are joining us and you find yourself in that very situation, based upon what we have read, we give this: stand your ground. And never allow yourself to be drawn into services, to false gods or goddesses like Easter in order to conduct practices of any kind to pagan gods and goddesses. Why? It’s kind of like the same question again in another format, right? Why?

Why is it so bad to participate in pagan religious practices?

Brother Bob: Does the Bible say anything more about these things? I want something very specific. There’s a very powerful pronouncement in the Holy Scriptures as to why. I have to say this slow, I want you to catch it, okay? Why it is so very dangerous for anyone to participate in any of them, any popular pagan practices. Consider what I now read, also the writings of Apostle Paul, 1st Corinthians chapter 10, verse 20:

No, but the sacrifices of pagans are offered to demons, not to God, and I do not want you to be participants with demons.

[1 Corinthians 10:20 New International Version]

Brother Bob: That’s the Bible. Obviously, therefore, we can have no part in that at all. If we truly want to serve God, here inside the Church Of Christ, we will have no part in those things.

How about you? How about you? Another guiding, divine principle by which Christians should base their service to God, and, let’s say even their way of life, there’s a principle that has to be understood very well. 1 Corinthians 4:6. Let’s take a look at this and this is in the format of an instruction to us all:

Now, brothers, I have applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may learn from us the meaning of the saying, “Do not go beyond what is written.” …

[1 Corinthians 4:6 New International Version]

Brother Bob: What’s an important principle? Don’t go beyond what’s written. Don’t invent things and pretend to call it service to the Lord.

That’s a very direct instruction we receive there, which we take very seriously here inside the Church Of Christ. What would be an example of going—listen to the question. What would be an example of going beyond what is written?

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EASTER TRADITIONS & PRACTICES goes beyond what is written in the Bible

Brother Bob: Easter traditions. Easter practices. Therefore your decision right now, today must be to adhere to the truth that comes from the word of God. When you choose to do that, what must you also leave behind? A command of the Lord I quote Titus 1:14:

Don’t pay any attention to any of those senseless Jewish stories and human commands. These are made up by people who won’t obey the truth.

[Titus 1:14 Contemporary English Version]

Brother Bob: What’s the instruction? Don’t pay any attention to those things that are made up by people who refuse to embrace the truth. Don’t pay any attention. That’s not our advice to you. That’s not our counsel. That’s not our words. That’s the word of God in the Holy Scriptures. He said, “Don’t pay any attention to that.”

So, dear friends, will you obey the truth? If there are religious practices such as Easter that do not come from God, be careful, don’t follow those practices. They oppose the will of God.

Before we finish up here in just a moment, let’s ask another question or two. How are we instructed to live our lives? There’s an important—I’ve been seeing Bible principles, but if we could call this a Bible principle as well or an instruction regarding our life. What is it? Ephesians 4:17 reads this way:

Therefore I say this – indeed, in union with the Lord I insist on it: do not live any longer as the pagans live, with their sterile ways of thinking.

[Ephesians 4:17 Complete Jewish Bible]

Brother Bob: Is that complicated? Is it hard to understand? The LORD said how to live our life. If up to this moment we have been living it and allowing ourselves to embrace pagan practices and cultural anomalies in service to their ancient pagan gods, God said, “Don’t do that.” And we learned that a lot of them are being taught and embraced within Catholicism. We read the Catholic Dictionary, Catholic Encyclopedia, a couple different of the Catholic Encyclopedia quotes. Do they deny that their teachings and practices came from paganism? Let’s be fair, if we’re going to quote these things and speak of that, let’s give them the chance to admit or deny or respond. Think that’s fair? What do you say?

Audience: Yes.

Brother Bob: That’s very fair, right? Let’s take a look at another reading from the book written by a Catholic priest. This is their official response and the book is entitled The Externals of the Catholic Church. Let’s take a look at it. Let’s take a look at it together—Externals of the Catholic Church page 156:

It is interesting to note how often our Church has availed herself of practices which were in common use among pagans, … Thus it is true, in a certain sense, that some Catholic rites and ceremonies are reproduction of those pagan creeds; but they are the taking of what was best from paganism, the keeping of symbolically practices which express the religious instinct that is common to all races and times.

[Externals of the Catholic Church – Page 156, By John F Sullivan]

Brother Bob: Do they admit or deny? They admit it. They know it. The Catholic Church admits that their practices originate from paganism and their excuse for using unbiblical practices, “Well, we got their best. We got the best from paganism.” Not a good reason, not a good reason at all.

For those who will say, “Well, they celebrate Easter to remember the life and death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.” The Catholic Church also claims that in some of their writings. Did Christ, however, prescribe that we would commemorate his death, His resurrection by chocolate Easter bunnies and Easter egg hunts? You can’t read that anywhere in the Bible. What can you read in the Bible from 1 Corinthians chapter 11?

To finish up what actually is to be done to remember the crucifixion, the death, followed by the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ—11:24 and 25:

and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is my body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”

[1 Corinthians 11:24-25 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: What can we all see here? “Do this in remembrance of me.” Take from the cup. Take of that one bread. It’s my body, it’s my blood, do this. This is what’s to be done in the remembrance of that sacrifice, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, not Easter bunnies, as good as chocolate is. That’s not the way. The pagans, they were ignorant of God’s teachings through Christ. So the Christians were therefore warned not to live as pagans.

As Christians, we are bound to obey what we learned from our Lord Jesus Christ, as recorded in Scripture, wherein we are not ignorant of these things. Now, neither are you. With this knowledge, what seemed before maybe like a harmless holiday, is actually, now you understand it, is deeply rooted in false religious beliefs and celebrating it would have dire consequences to your spiritual health.

So we’ve come full circle.

Who are you?

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1 – You’re fully aware of the origins of this holiday and it’s really nothing that you’re too concerned about.

2 – Whether or not you know its origins or history, in essence the holiday is just a fun thing to participate in.

3 – You don’t know much about easter or the origins of its traditions, but are interested to find out.

Brother Bob: What does celebrating Easter and the traditions, what does it say about you? It says you are either number one, number two, or number three. We hope you are a number three, and that we’ll see you again soon just as engaged, just as eager to learn as you are right now.

Thank you for joining us in this episode of That’s in the Bible live. We’ll hope that you will visit INCMedia.org and iglesianicristo.net when you are ready to learn more about the fundamental teachings found here inside the Church Of Christ.

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Learn more at incmedia.org

Brother Bob: We’ll also help guide you to the nearest House of Worship near to your residence, where you can meet ministers and undergo important series of Bible study lessons.

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Find a house of worship near you: IglesiaNiCristo.net/directory

Brother Bob: We also have Facebook pages and there you can view more of our shows and content and see how the Church also gets involved with the community there.

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Follow us on Facebook:

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Brother Bob: You can go to incgiving.org.

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Learn more at incgiving.org

Brother Bob: You can even volunteer along with us to partner up with our community outreach programs and outlets to have an impact in the world around us. If you have other questions about the Bible, we have a team of ministers always standing by to provide answers. Those answers will always come from the Holy Bible. If you’d like, you can also email us at answers@incmedia.org.

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EMAIL US YOUR QUESTIONS

Brother Bob: I’m Bob Pellien and we’ll see you again next time on That’s in the Bible. Thank you all very much!

Can People Stop Being Gay?

Is it a choice? Are you born with it? Is it ok to be gay even if God says otherwise? What if you’re inclined but want to follow God’s instruction?

Should Christians Celebrate Halloween?

Is Halloween in the Bible? Is the origin of Halloween Pagan or Christian? Is it possible to just celebrate the holiday and go trick-or-treating for fun?

Show/Hide Transcript

Brother Bob Pellien: Hello, and welcome, everyone!

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Brother Bob Pellien | Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: I’m Brother Bob Pellien and thanks for joining us today in this episode of That’s in the Bible. Today we’re going to be addressing what you may have seen on social media recently. There’s quite a debate brewing. A lot of elementary schools are removing Halloween, and the parents are in quite an uproar about it saying things like, “Well, schools are just taking away the fun for the children. It’s a nice candy day for the kids.” Dear friends, there would not be such a debate if in fact everyone really understood the symbolism of Halloween, the origin, the history, and what it is all about. That’s precisely what was written into our program by Dianey. She wrote and she asked us this question, “Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?”

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Question: Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

Dianey

Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

Brother Bob: Well, Dianey, we’re not going to turn to the Holy Scriptures to find the origins of Halloween.

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We’re NOT going to turn to the HOLY SCRIPTURES to find the ORIGINS of HALLOWEEN

Brother Bob: Why, you may ask? This is the program That’s in the Bible. Well it’s because that’s actually not in the Bible.

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HALLOWEEN’S NOT in the BIBLE

Brother Bob: In fact, it has its origins in ancient pagan cultures, otherwise known as non Christians who are worshipping multiple gods.

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Brother Bob Pellien | Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: So dear friends, before you place any of ourselves on either side of that ongoing debate, we need to educate ourselves. So together, let’s take a look into Halloween’s history. Where did Halloween come from?

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Where did Halloween come from?

Brother Bob: In a book entitled Catholic Customs & Traditions, which is a popular guide written by Greg Dues. Here on page 196 this is what’s written:

There are several possibilities for the origin of the tradition of giving treats

as part of trick or treating…The more probable origin lies in the pagan New

Year celebration among the Celts. It was thought that the ghosts who

roamed freely that night would be satisfied with a banquet table laid out in

homes. For a while after Christianity arrived in Celtic lands, there was an

attempt to transfer this custom to the eve of All Souls Day (November 2).

Masked children would go from door to door to pray for the departed loved

ones in return for a treat.

[Catholic Customs & Traditions: A Popular Guide, pg. 196]

Brother Bob: So here, dear friends, we could see then, and Dianey, thank you for your question, the origin of Halloween and some of its customs in trick or treating and such, the origin of Halloween is not in the Bible at all, but rather it has its roots in ancient pagan cultures.

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The ORIGIN of HALLOWEEN is NOT in the BIBLE at all

What is the history of Halloween?

Brother Bob: What is this Halloween holiday all about? Let’s delve into a little bit further so you know which side of that debate you should put yourself on. If we look further into the history of Halloween, for example, if we turn to the very popular Encyclopedia Britannica, Volume II, page 15, right here it says the following about Halloween:

HALLOWEEN (in Medieval times “All Hallows”) kept on October 31, the

eve of All Saints’ Day, was the Celtic festival at the end of summer named

Samhain. It was connected with…the practice of divinations and its

association with the dead, whose souls were supposed to revisit their

homes on this day.

[Encyclopedia Britannica, Volume II, pg. 15]

Brother Bob: So, once again, it did not have and does not have a biblical origin. But as we just read there, history tells us it instead has its origin in ancient pagan cultures, and refers back to particularly a Celtic festival at New Year’s time, the end of summer at the end of the year, called Samhain, and it was connected with divination.

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Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

Brother Bob: Now, the dead souls at that time—and this is an important thing—because the dead souls were supposed to return to their homes during that festival.

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Brother Bob Pellien | Minister of the Gospel

What every Christian should know about Halloween

Brother Bob: Does the Bible have anything to say about these practices of Halloween, the divination, ghosts returning to the homes, the trick or treat and all the various things like that? All right then, let’s go to the Holy Bible. We turn to Leviticus 19:26 wherein it says the following:

“‘Do not eat any meat with the blood still in it. “‘Do not practice divination or sorcery.

[Leviticus 19:26 New International Version]

So the Bible does have a response regarding these things. It says first of all, “Don’t do that.” This is what every Christian should know about Halloween. The Bible specifically prohibits such things.

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Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

What about Trick or Treating?

Brother Bob: And what about the pagan practice to prepare a banquet table for the dead returning to their home, which contributed to the current customs of receiving treats when you go to the homes and yell, “Trick or treat!” Trick or treating is an important and popular part of the Halloween festivities. Dear friends, the Bible also addresses that and does so here in the book of Job chapter 7:

As the cloud disappears and vanishes away, So he who goes down

to the grave does not come up. He shall never return to his house,

Nor shall his place know him anymore.

[Job 7:9-10 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So dear friends, the Bible makes it very clear [that] there’s no returning to the home anymore as a ghost or as a skeleton or such things like that, the kind of costumes that parents put their children in, ghosts and skeletons and all that things is part of the traditions of this history we’re discussing here.

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Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

Brother Bob: And they do so to get treats from the banquet table on that particular night. So, Dianey, we again, thank you for your question. Understand, the Bible clearly teaches against such things. So that is why Christians shouldn’t celebrate Halloween.

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Christian should NOT celebrate HALLOWEEN.

Brother Bob: But let’s continue with both sides of the debate because some will say, “Well, even though it has those kind of pagan cultural origins, it’s just a fun thing for children to do. Why take it out of the schools?” They say, “Why not encourage the children to participate? It’s just fun. It’s an old tradition.” They say, “Kids love it.” We get it. We understand that side of the debate.

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Brother Bob Pellien | Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: But look, here’s what the what the Scriptures and has to say. It was Apostle Paul’s a letter to Timothy where he addressed it in these terms. Let’s take a look here at 1 Timothy chapter 4, it says in verse 7 the following:

But reject profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise yourself

toward godliness.

[I Timothy 4:7 New King James Version]

Halloween and the Devil

Brother Bob: So the biblical instruction is very explicit, dear friends. It says to reject such kind of fables and exercise, instead, godliness. There’s another element of Halloween that I suppose many do not know, and that element of Halloween was described [also] in the Encyclopedia Britannica. Let’s take let’s take a look at it. It’s recorded in Volume II also on page 15:

The autumnal festival acquired sinister significance, with ghosts, witches,

hobgoblins, fairies and demons of all kinds…It was the only day in which

the help of the devil was invoked for such purposes.

[Encyclopedia Britannica, Volume II, Pg. 15]

Brother Bob: Imagine that, dear friends? Imagine Halloween was the day [on] which they were able to invoke or ask, and that was the practice, to ask the assistance of none other than the devil himself. Obviously we here inside the Church Of Christ use these reasons for not celebrating Halloween. How could we?

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Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

Brother Bob: But then, maybe there would be those who would want to say, “Well look, we’re not thinking of it’s pagan origins and we’re certainly not going to invoke the help of the devil, of course. So we’re just doing this because it’s cute to see the children wearing costumes of the devil, costumes of ghosts, and costumes of all these different things and the children enjoy going to Halloween parties and they get all kinds of candy for their kids.”

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Brother Bob Pellien | Minister of the Gospel

What does the Bible say about pagan practices?

Brother Bob: So is there any biblical guidance that God would want us to know and understand as we listen to the ongoing debate at schools whether or not Halloween should be something Christians should participate in? Dear friends, we turn again to the Holy Bible and this time it’s Apostle Paul’s letter. He wrote the following to the Ephesians. Ephesians 4:17 which reads this way:

Here then is my word to you, and I urge it on you in the Lord’s name: give up living as pagans do with their futile notions.

[Ephesians 4:17 Revised English Bible]

Brother Bob: Does the Bible give any instruction? Does the Bible give any guidance? What’s the instruction? Absolutely it gives us instruction. And what was it? He said, “Give up all those things that have to do with pagan origin.”

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GIVE UP all those things that have to do with PAGAN ORIGIN

Brother Bob: That’s the instruction, dear friends. So if we’re going to consider the ongoing debate, which side should we be on? Here inside the Church Of Christ, we’ll be on the side of doing it the Lord’s way and give up those Halloween practices that go against the teachings of God.

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Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

Brother Bob: Why are so many people choosing pagan cultures and incorporating their traditions into the holidays of current times? There’s something that they have missed, and what they have missed was mentioned by Apostle Paul in the format of a warning. What was the warning of the Apostle Paul given in the Holy Scriptures? Here’s what he said. He said it in his letter to the Colossians 2:8 is where it’s recorded.

Don’t let anyone lead you astray with empty philosophy and high-

sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the evil powers of this world, and not from Christ.

[Colossians 2:8 New Living Translation]

Brother Bob: So, the Bible is very clear. It clearly issued the warning not to let anyone lead you astray with human traditions, human ideologies and philosophies that they have themselves simply invented or incorporated from pagan cultures.

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Brother Bob Pellien | Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: There was a direct instruction as well, also from Apostle Paul, when he spoke in a similar way to the to the Galatians. Not only was his advice,” Don’t let someone lead you astray.” That’s what people miss. They missed the point that they’re being led astray by those things. But he went on to say to the Galatians in Galatians 1:8:

But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to

you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.

[Galatians 1:8-9 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: So dear friends, even if others will say or try to convince us, “It’s just for fun.” And if they will say, ”No one thinks of it as pagan practice.”

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Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

Brother Bob: Truth of the matter is, it doesn’t erase where this holiday came from. Simply put, celebrating Halloween means to embrace something that is not Christian. To conclude, therefore, on that point I would like to read one more Bible verse. Apostle Paul’s letter to the Corinthians, 1 Corinthians 15:1-2:

Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you—unless you believed in vain.

[I Corinthians 15:1-2 New King James Version]

Brother Bob: Halloween, dear friends, may seem harmless on the surface. But after gaining this knowledge, we urge you to make an informed decision regarding whether or not it’s something you want to participate in, you want your children to participate in. Apostle Paul said to hold on to what was preached if we want to be saved.

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Brother Bob Pellien | Minister of the Gospel

Brother Bob: Here in the Church Of Christ, we use the Bible only as the basis of our beliefs. We stand by it, no matter what people around us may say, or do, or believe about us.

Dianey, we are so very thankful for your question. And when you’re ready to learn more about the fundamental teachings found here inside the Church Of Christ, please visit us online or visit any of our various social media accounts.

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Follow us on Facebook:

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Brother Bob: To speak to a Minister of the Gospel or to join us in worship, you can find a directory of our houses of worship online, also.

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Find a house of worship near you: IglesiaNiCristo.net/directory

Brother Bob: If you have any questions about the Bible, please email us for a chance that your question would be featured on the show.

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answers@incmedia.org

EMAIL US YOUR QUESTIONS

Brother Bob: Well, dear friends, I’m brother Bob Pellien, and we want to thank you once again for joining us! We’ll see you again next time on That’s in the Bible.

Christmas: Why You Should Not Celebrate It

Why should Christmas not be celebrated by Christians? Since it has pagan roots, why is it observed—and even considered a national holiday—in many Christian-majority countries?

“Show/Hide

Voiceover: Next on That’s in the Bible!

[Video: Question from Trisha of San Diego, CA]

Trisha: Why do some religions not celebrate Christmas?

[Video: Question from Carlos Aloyo of San Diego, CA]

Carlos: Why do all the different Jesus-branded religions celebrate Christmas when it’s pretty much a proven fact that Christmas was actually a festival during Roman times, and it was used as a symbol for Jesus when in actuality that was not Jesus’ birthday?

[Video ends]

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DECEMBER 25 WAS NOT THE BIRTHDAY OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST.

See to it that nobody enslaves you with philosophy and foolish deception, which conform to human traditions and the way the world thinks and acts rather than Christ.

[Colossians 2:8 Common English Bible]

[Show open]

Why do some religions not celebrate Christmas?

Brother Bob Pellien: Hello, I’m Brother Bob Pellien. Thanks for joining us in this episode of That’s in the Bible. Our first question today comes from Trisha from San Diego, California. Here’s what Trisha asks:

[Video: Question from Trisha of San Diego, CA]

Trisha: Hi, my name is Trisha, and I’m from San Diego, California. My question is why do some religions not celebrate Christmas?

[Video ends]

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Why do some religions NOT celebrate Christmas?

Brother Bob: Trisha, thank you very much for your question. You know, every year at the time of some of the large holidays—the big holidays—there are those who take notice of various organizations—what they do, and what they do not do—and they become curious. Here in the Church Of Christ, we don’t put up Christmas trees in our homes and such, and we don’t hang the tinsel and Christmas lights and do various of the other practices of Christmas, and it always makes some like you, Trisha, and others wonder why we do not celebrate Christmas, and because in their mind they’re thinking that we are opposing the birth of Christ.

Clearly, the Bible records the birth of Christ, but nowhere does it record the instances of celebrating with Christmas trees, the birth of Christ with Christmas trees, and lights, and gift exchanges, and all things that are done at Christmas time. Why don’t we do those things? Is it bad to do those things? Let’s go to the scriptures for some Biblical answers to these questions. First, we turn to Deuteronomy 12:32 where the Lord’s instruction goes like this:

See that you do all I command you; do not add to it or take away from it.

[Deuteronomy 12:32 New International Version]

Brother Bob: The Lord’s instruction here is very clear. He said, “Do what I have commanded.” If then God commanded to celebrate the birth of Christ by means of Christmas trees and lights and tinsel and exchanging of gifts and all the other frills that has become just but so normal for celebrators of Christmas, then we must all jump in and do that. But God clearly said, “Do what I have commanded you,” and then He gave an important secondary instruction, which was what? “Don’t add to it”; don’t add to what the Lord commanded to be done. Well, why not add? His further instruction was penned down by Apostle Paul like this; in his letter to the Corinthians, 1 Corinthians, chapter 4, verse 6:

These things, my brethren, concerning myself and Apollos I have pictured for your sakes, that in our example you may learn not to think beyond that which is written,…

[1 Corinthians 4:6 Lamsa Bible]

Brother Bob: We will not, then, come up with any invented ideas or such on what we should do at times of Christmas, December 25^th, because the Lord said, “Don’t even think beyond what is written.” Much less come up with some kind of a festival, some kind of a birthday celebration, and use trees, and lights, and candles, and gift-giving, and all such things, which are totally absent from the commands of the Lord, and He said, “Don’t add, and don’t take away from His instructions.”

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But maybe someone would logically want to pose the question and say, “Well, you know, it’s just a tradition—no big deal.” Regarding that philosophy of, “Well, it should be okay because it’s just a tradition that we’re doing. We’re not trying to oppose God or oppose Christ by the various practices that we engage in at Christmas time; just a tradition.”

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Why do some religions NOT celebrate Christmas?

Does the Bible have anything to say regarding that philosophy or that way of thinking? We turn again to the Bible; this time, the book of Colossians, chapter 2, here in verse 8, it says:

See to it that nobody enslaves you with philosophy and foolish deception, which conform to human traditions and the way the world thinks and acts rather than Christ.

[Colossians 2:8 Common English Bible]

Brother Bob: So, you know, Trisha, one may say then, “Well, it’s just the way the world is traditionally celebrating; it’s just the way the world is doing this or that.” Well, the Bible was very, very clear – not to go along with the philosophical traditions, and what is, the actions of the world instead of what the Lord has given us to do.

Why do people celebrate Christmas if it’s not Jesus’ birthday?

Brother Bob: There are those who have noticed historical elements of Christmas and here’s one who has taken note of some of the history behind Christmas. Let’s take a look at what he says.

[Video: Question from Carlos Aloyo of San Diego, California]

Carlos: Hi, my name is Carlos Aloyo and I’m from San Diego, California, and my question is why do all the different—I don’t know how to say this—”Jesus-branded” religions celebrate Christmas when it’s pretty much a proven fact that Christmas was actually a festival during Roman times, and it was used to . . . it was used later on as a symbol for Jesus when in actuality that was not Jesus’ birthday, and it was in fact just a holiday for the Romans.

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Why do Jesus-branded religions celebrate Christmas when they know it’s a pagan festival?

Brother Bob: Thank you also, Carlos, for your question, and as we can all notice, in the question of Carlos, he makes mention that “Jesus-branded” —if we’ll use Carlos’ terms—”Jesus-branded” religions are celebrating Christmas, and may not have looked into its historical roots. He made mention that it has a connection to some Roman festivals. So, let’s check some historical documentation about that. For example, if we were to turn to the New International Dictionary of the Christian Church, page 223, it says this:

There is no authoritative historical evidence as to the day or month of Christ’s birth in Jerusalem.

[J.D. Douglas Zondervan Publishing House, pg 223]

Brother Bob: So, Carlos, it’s really very correct. Looking in the history, one is never going to find anywhere in the Bible, or in any historical documents for that matter, that Jesus was born on December 25^th. There is just no claim to that Biblically, no claim or finding of it in history—it is simply not so. While one may say, “Well then, how did December 25^th come to be the day that everybody celebrates Christmas, the birth of Christ?”

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CHRISTMAS: THE BIRTH OF CHRIST?

Why did they pick December 25^th? I’d like to quote from another book. This one is entitled Handbook of Christian Feasts and Customs by Francis Weiser. He writes on page 60 the following . . .

In fact, it was expressly stated in Rome that the actual date of the Saviour’s birth was unknown and that different traditions prevailed in different parts of the world… the choice of December 25 was influenced by the fact that the Romans, from the time of Emperor Aurelian (275), had celebrated the feast of the sun god (Sol Invictus: the Unconquered Sun) on that day. December 25 was called the ‘Birthday of the Sun,’ and great pagan religious celebrations of the Mithras cult were held all through the empire.

[Francis X. Weiser, The Missionary Society of St. Paul the Apostle in the State of New York; pg 60]

Brother Bob: They did pick December 25^th, and they had a reason for picking December 25^th. They wanted to unite it with the “Birthday of the Sun.” S-U-N, not S-O-N. The sun god, Sol Invictus, and the Roman Empire and the pagan cultures surrounding them began to mesh together and it became, then, a Christianized, pagan festival —picking December 25^th and the various practices of pagan cultures, like the tree, and the lights, and the candles, and the gift-giving, and all such things like that, which did not come from Holy Scriptures.

And for the people of God—members of the Church Of Christ—we simply step aside from all those things, and give glory to God for the birth of Christ, our Savior, and His sacrificial death on the cross for the redemption of our souls. And we won’t celebrate instead the pagan festivals.

If Christmas is against the Bible, why do people celebrate it?

Brother Bob: Lee Cunningham from Kent, Washington, also took note of the [Christmas times] by posing his question like this.

[On-screen text graphic: Question from Lee Cunningham of Kent, Washington]

If national holidays like Christmas are against the Bible, then why are they celebrated?

Brother Bob: You know, dear friends, Lee’s question is of utmost importance because asking why are there still those celebrating Christmas when it clearly has no roots in Holy Scripture, has its roots in pagan festivals and service and traditions offered to false gods in ancient times—why are there still those who celebrate it? Maybe there would be those who want to jump in and say, “Well, because it’s fun,” or, “I don’t mean ill respect to God.” But, you know, the Bible does have an answer why, Lee. There are still so many who are demanding their own way, insisting on what they like, and what they want, rather than the simple, important truths of scripture. And the reason—it’s recorded here in 2 Timothy, chapter 4, and it’s worded like this in verse 3:

The time is coming when people won’t listen to good teaching. Instead, they will look for teachers who will please them by telling them only what they are itching to hear.

[2 Timothy 4:3 Contemporary English Version]

Brother Bob: Lee, that’s the reason. Because people will seek out actual preachers who will tell them that what they are doing is fine. People nowadays will search out teachers and preachers who are not interested in the teachings that will come from their lips—having their roots in the Holy Bible—but rather will have their roots only in their own whims and desires to satisfy the people who will be listening to them, rather than satisfying or giving glory to God, who has created us. And given to us His laws, and His commands. For us, members of the Church Of Christ, who bring to you this program each week – our stand remains the same.

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If national holidays like Christmas are against the Bible, then why are they celebrated?

We will follow the laws of God recorded in the Bible. And Lee, we will not edit even one of them. Even if it would make so many others happy; they would love to hear us say, “Oh Merry Christmas! Oh, do this and do that. It’s all fine, well and good.” But here in the Church Of Christ, why is it that we will always stick to the laws of God, the best of our human capacity, no matter what? Answer of the Bible again. This time, recorded by the Apostle James, chapter 2, verse 10…

If you obey every law except one, you are still guilty of breaking them all.

[James 2:10 Contemporary English Version]

Brother Bob: One cannot edit, pick and choose what laws of God they want to embrace, what laws of God they want to throw away, and change for pagan festivals instead. We don’t have that privilege. True servants of God will always be obedient. And when God said, “Don’t even think beyond what is written. Don’t add to it. Don’t subtract from it,” the people of God here inside the Church Of Christ—members of the Church Of Christ —that will be a principal, a Biblical principal, we will embrace with all our heart, and we share it with you today, as we do each and every time that we meet on this program. Well, that’s all we have time for today. But if you also have questions that you’d like us to address here on this program, please e-mail us.

[On-screen text graphic]

ANSWERS@INCMEDIA.ORG

And we’ll use the guidance of the Holy Scriptures to help you find your answers, the truth that’s in the Bible.Thanks for watching. I’m Brother Bob Pellien and we’ll see you again next time.

God’s Chosen People

Did you know God has chosen ones to serve Him? Does He love all people? What’s God’s idea of unconditional love and does it apply to us today? Why are there so many different religions in the world? Find out the answer, and more, on That’s in the Bible!

Category: That’s in the Bible

What are the Ten Commandments in the Bible?

What are the initial Ten Commandments in the Bible?

Who received the Ten Commandments?

Who were the Ten Commandments for?

Do the Ten Commandments still apply today?

Are there only ten commandments to follow?

Does God Love Everyone Unconditionally?

What Does Celebrating Easter Say About You?

What Does Celebrating Easter Say About You?

Do you celebrate Easter?

How do you celebrate Easter?

How do you prepare for Easter?

What do you know about Easter?

Easter symbols, traditions, and practices

Lent

What does the Bible say about Easter?

What if Easter is just for fun and not a form of worship?

Why is it so bad to participate in pagan religious practices?

EASTER TRADITIONS & PRACTICES goes beyond what is written in the Bible

Who are you?

Can People Stop Being Gay?

Should Christians Celebrate Halloween?

Why shouldn’t we celebrate Halloween, and how did it start?

What is the history of Halloween?

What every Christian should know about Halloween

What about Trick or Treating?

Halloween and the Devil

What does the Bible say about pagan practices?

Christmas: Why You Should Not Celebrate It

Why do some religions not celebrate Christmas?

Why do people celebrate Christmas if it’s not Jesus’ birthday?

If Christmas is against the Bible, why do people celebrate it?

God’s Chosen People

Why is Baptism Necessary?

Soul, Spirit & Body

Hardships in Life