Title: Obedience Beyond Understanding
Obedience beyond understanding
November 27, 2010 Tel Aviv Joppa Church
Text: Luke 1:26-38
Adventure begins this week. Advent is also called Advent or Advent. In the past, it was often called Advent, but because of this, the word Advent is used more. Advent is literally the season of waiting for the coming of the Lord and Christmas.
Nowadays, there are people who are sensitive about the date of Christmas. It's not December 25th. In fact, in Israel, if you look at the Eastern or Armenian churches, they keep it at the beginning of January. Roman Catholics and Protestants observe December 25th, Eastern Churches observe January 6th, and Armenian Churches observe January 18th as Christmas Day. And some say that the actual date of Jesus' birth is not at this time, but at a different time.
There are also those who claim that the birth date of Jesus was set on December 25th because of the pagans. It's not unfounded, but it's something to be aware of. This is because heretics such as the Ahn Sahng-hong Witnesses are using these as a means to attack the church.
The important thing is this. In the early church era, the birthday of Jesus was not considered very important. What was important in the early church was the fact that Jesus was the Messiah, the Son of God who came to this earth in a human body. Rather than the question of when that day will be, the focus is on Jesus Himself who became incarnate to save mankind.
Think about it. Does it matter that when Jesus' birthday is? Does it really matter if that day is December 25th, January 6th, or any other day? Does it change the joy and gratitude of Christmas? no. What is important is not the date, but gratitude and joy for the Son of God who came to this earth.
The same goes for Easter. Some people take issue with calling Easter as 'Easter' rather than 'The Recycle' in English. It has to do with pagan worship of the sun god It is not without such historical data. You could say that the name should be changed. But more important than that is the historical event of the resurrection and its meaning. Controversy over the name should not distract from its essence.
The essence is not the name or the date, but its meaning. Name disputes or date disputes that have lost their meaning are meaningless. I think it's more meaningful that Christmas is on December 25th. Because it is related to the Jewish festival of Hanukkah. Hanukkah is the feast translated as the Feast of Pentecost in John 10.
According to the Jewish calendar, Hanukkah is the month of Kislev.