New Years Eve

This is about a year ago, I think, that I spoke on the topic of Christmas. It's kind of where you lay the topic in a way through God's eyes. I think that was even the title. It's been a while. It's been about a year. Christmas through God's eyes. How does God view things? How does He look at things? How is it that He says things? Because sometimes we try to, and often do, view things through our own perspective, through our own eyes. And yet God says, no, you do what's right in my sight. And there's a scripture, we'll talk about that here in a moment, but that God says, you know, I've been around for a long time and I kind of know a few things and I am your father and you are my children and there are things that I want to share and I want to teach you about. Scripture commands to us that we are to worship God in the way that He wants to be worshiped. Not necessarily the way that we think we should worship Him, but in the way that He says that He wants to be worshiped. He makes it clear, as I covered in that sermon a year ago and actually touched on a little bit in some of the email announcements probably last week, that I sent over to International and I did give a copy to you as well. Kind of wanted to give you a little bit of a flavor of what some of the types of emails that I send overseas. So last Sabbath emails was pretty much an indication of the type of things that we share with some of the people overseas. And the title of that particular message, the email message, was Christmas Through God's Eyes. Quite a lot of the same information that I shared with you here about a year ago.

We are told by God not to add nor to take away from the things that He instructs us. Well, we've gotten through the Christmas season, but what about New Year's Eve?

What about New Year's Eve? Is that of God? You know, tonight I think most of us know, is New Year's Eve? Well, at least from the world's perspective, because we'll see in a moment that this is not the end of God's year nor the close to beginning of His year. We'll cover that here in just a moment. But there's going to be very many people around the world. They're going to be gathered together in various locations, various places, various halls, various homes, in order to see the scene out of the old year and the bringing in of a new year.

Many people are going to stay up late tonight, up until midnight, and probably many will see the big ball that falls down at Times Square in New York City.

Many of us have maybe witnessed that over the years. We've seen that, and personally on television. And you know, and the atmosphere there will be festive.

It will be a big party. It's going to look like a lot of fun.

You know, when it talks about a little bit about some of the trends of things that have happened. I've got an article here I'm going to quote here from. It's talking about Times Square, New Year's Eve, and it talks a little bit about the dropping of the confetti. It's a little bit about the facts and circumstances about that. And maybe you've seen that also over the years. But somebody has to drop over 7,000 pounds of very colored tissue. And also Motley Mylar. And it's interspersed with wishes from people from all around the world that have been sent by people all around the world of good wishes that begin to fall down from the sky about midnight. I'm going to read here. It says, Tossing it ever so carefully is the task of about 100 volunteers perched on roofs and setbacks of seven buildings from 43rd to 48th Street. There's actually a business that has the responsibility for making sure that this falls down correctly. And they have these volunteers that help them. They also are involved with political campaigns when the balloons fall. This is a certain business that has this responsibility. This is what they do.

But the author said that the crowd over the years has changed. It's changed in size, in tone, and in demographic. On New Year's Eve, back in 1966 and 1967, I'm quoting now, in my Columbia University days, I came out on 42nd Street movie theater. He'd watched the movie. Notice that it was a few minutes after midnight. And I was able to call my mother on a payphone just around the corner from the revelers who probably numbered in the low hundred thousands. So maybe around 100, 100, 1000 or so he's estimating. These days, you would need to be the mayor or whatever pop star is the featured performer to get access to that point today.

You know how many come to Times Square now? He thought it was a little low 100,000, it's about 100,000. How many come to Times Square now in New Year's Eve? Maybe you're thinking. Fewer to guess.

One million. One million people. Ten times the amount of people that came in 1966 and 1967. You know how many they estimate that watch this ball fall down in New York City on television all around the world? How many that they estimate? One billion. Nearly one out of every seven people on the face of the earth. Wow. Wow. So here we've got these types of things that are happening. Now, when I was living in Pasadena, California, back in probably it was sort of between 1978 and 1981, I saw several New Year's celebrations. In fact, the Rose Parade, many of you probably familiar with that, very famous parade on New Year's Day. And along the parade route, early the morning of December 31st, people would start claiming their territory, their place, that they'd have a good spot to be able to watch the parade. And as the afternoon wore on and then got into the early evening, it just became one big party. You know, the alcohol began to freely flow, and there were a lot of promiscuity that was going on. You know, there was a lot of things that were happening. Now, when you look at all these people, it looks like it's okay. It looks like it's fun. You know, you wear these funny little pointed hats, and you've got these things you can blow on that, you know, they collapse and blow out. And you know, you've got confetti and the streamers and the abundance of alcoholic beverages and all of those things. And it looks like it's a great time. And who doesn't want to have a good time? There's more than probably one reason that I wanted to address this subject. I mean, one of the things is that we need to know what God has to say about it. But God also wants us to be careful that we don't slowly, that ever so surely, begin to be influenced by the culture that is around us. You know, any of us can get on some of the social media and Facebook and I don't know what other social medias that are out there. And we begin to see, and I've seen some brethren, not thankfully not in the three church area that I have to serve, but I've seen some brethren kind of get caught up a little bit on some of the festivities. And so it's just something to think about and something I think that God warns us about from Scripture, which we'll see in a moment. But getting back to this Pasadena, California observance that I saw. I mean, there's one in New York City, there's one in Pasadena, California, and who knows how many other cities around the, not only the country, but around the globe. But I saw, and I personally witnessed, you know, the escalation of the alcohol. And of course, you know what happens when you take too much alcohol? That begins to take away your control. You begin to do things and think things that you wouldn't necessarily do. The social barriers begin to fall. And so I saw it lead to the lowering of social barriers. I saw it lead to fighting for territory to have a good spot in the parade. I saw fights.

I saw also language begin to change. And I saw sexual promiscuity. I saw people, I knew what they were doing. I didn't see it, but I knew that they were having sexual relations in a sleeping bag. Those are all things that were happening on that evening. All of these things that I personally witnessed as a naive 21-year-old from the Midwest. The question I think we need to raise, we're going to raise a few questions here, is what about New Year's? What about New Year's Eve? What about New Year's Day? What about its celebrations? Is it of God? So that's the title of the message today. New Year's Eve. Is it of God? And what we'll do is we'll specifically raise some questions and then try to answer them from the Word of God. So what about it?

Would Jesus Christ keep New Year's? We touched on the sermon at what he what he wear tattoos. Would he keep New Year's? And should we celebrate it? What about some other questions? How did the celebration of New Year's begin? We will look at some of the historical sources. What are its origins?

And why is the beginning of a year placed right in the dead middle of winter?

How did that happen? Where did the customs surrounding it originate? And is January 1st the true beginning of the year? Or has God commanded a different time of the year that he reveals through Scripture? Is it God who has the authority to determine when a new year begins?

Or does mankind have that authority? So what does God think of New Year's? And should we celebrate it? Well, brethren, let me get to the bottom line here in a sense. Brethren, New Year's Eve is a heathen, gentile, pagan festival. And it has been for a very long time. It's one of the oldest and most universal of all heathenistic or paganistic traditions. It goes back a long ways. I'm going to quote here from some sources here. This one comes from 4,000 years of Christmas by Earl Count, pages 20 and 21. 4,000 years of Christmas.

He says, Mesopotamia is the very ancient mother of civilization. Christmas began there over 4,000 years ago. This would be approximately 2,000 years before Jesus Christ. Christmas began there over 4,000 years ago as the festival which renewed the world for another year. The 12 days of Christmas, the bright fires, and probably the Yule Log, the giving of presents, the carnivals with their floats, their merry makings and their clownings, the mummers who sing and play from house to house, the feasting, the church processions with their lights and song. All of these and more began centuries before Christ was born.

And this is how some of this began. It began a long time ago.

It began in ancient Babylonia in Mesopotamia, began with a pagan custom of ancient sun worship 2,000 years before the sun, S-O-N, of God came on the scene. You know, Christmas to New Year's, how many days? The 25th to the first? Eight days. So eight days. And I think few people are aware of how the eight days of Christmas to New Year's are really a counterfeit, in a sense. They're a counterfeit. They've got a holy day at the beginning and a holy day at the end, January 1st. A counterfeit that really, in a sense, may be God's appointed holy day, eight day festival. Feast of Tabernacles and the eighth day. Holy day at the beginning, holy day at the end. The eight days of Christmas to New Year's gave Catholics, as well as the Anglican Church, an eight day festival with a holy day at the beginning and one at the end, similar to the Feast of Tabernacles and eighth day. The Roman Catholic Church determined that if Jesus was born on December 25th, which frankly most biblical scholars suggest that that's probably not the time that he was born, they even admit that, most of them do, then they reasoned incorrectly that Jesus was circumcised eight days later on January 1st. Hence their rationale for the New Year's being, quote, the Feast of Circumcision. Now, I don't know about you, but I was not very aware of the Feast of Circumcision on January 1st. Anyone aware? Okay, got one. Catholic Church is basically the ones that started that. And so I gave this in La Crosse, Last Sabbath, and not one of them had ever heard of the Feast of Circumcision. So we'll talk about that here just in a moment.

So getting back to the New Year's festival, New Year's Eve festival, should Christian celebrate it? Well, the celebration of a New Year's festival is never once found in the Scripture.

There's no example. Even when it comes to God's day of the New Year, which we'll see is in the spring, God says nothing about celebrating a New Year's Day or New Year's Eve. So whether it be January 1st, whether it be the first of a bib, which we'll see in a moment from Scripture, is the first month of God's year, which falls in the spring. God says nothing about an observance. We see from the first century, from the New Testament, there's no example, there's no command by Jesus. There's no example by Jesus or the apostles that they observed a New Year's Eve festival. Moses was inspired and commanded by God to forbid such heathen customs into the worship of God. Let's take a look at that in Deuteronomy chapter 12 and verse number 28. Deuteronomy chapter 12 and we'll start in verse number 28.

Let's see what God shares with us here. This is our God speaking through one of his prophets. He's speaking through Moses. Moses was a faithful prophet of God and the words that God gave to him he shared with God's people. Deuteronomy chapter 12 and verse 28. He's speaking God's words, observe and obey all of these words which I command you.

So what are some of the words that we are to obey and what are we to observe? Well, we're going to read about those here as we go through some of the context here. But observe and obey all of these words which I command you. Well, let's see why that it may go well with you and with your children after you forever when you do what is good and right in the sight of the Lord your God in his sight not in our own in God's eyes through how he views it.

Well, let's see what are some of the things that he tells us now that we're to observe and to obey. Verse number 29. It says, when the Lord cuts off from you before you the nations which you go to dispossess and you displace them and you dwell in their land, then take heed to yourself that you are not ensnared to follow them after they are destroyed from before you and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, How did these nations serve their gods?

I will do likewise. Don't serve me, God says. Don't worship me the way that they worship false gods. Don't take those ways and apply them to me, is what God is saying very clearly. Verse 31. You shall not worship the Lord your God in that way because every abomination to the Lord which he hates they have done to their gods.

God can't speak more powerfully than the word abomination or detestable. We don't use that word abomination very often in the English language, but it's a very, very strong word. It's detestable. God hates some of these things that they have done to their gods. And he gives an example of how far it can go. For they burn even their sons and their daughters in the fire to their gods. They murder their own children as a human sacrifice to a false god.

Don't worship me in the way that they worship their gods. So does it really matter? Can we decide how to worship God? Can we decide? Can we choose? Is it all right to compromise with God? Well, let's turn to Ezekiel 11. Ezekiel 11. I heard a story from a fellow United Church of God minister who relayed a story about a conversation that he had with one of his past college buddies years ago who used to share our understandings when it came to some of these things like Christmas and New Year's and Easter and those types of things.

But he no longer shares our understandings. We probably know people that are in that type of a situation. But his past college friend said this, and I'm quoting now, God loves pagan festivals. God loves pagan festivals. His love excludes no one nor their festivals. Wow! What a statement! Isn't that clever? God's love excludes no one and their festivals. Sounds like it could be maybe true in a twisted sort of way.

Brethren, is it true that God loves pagan festivals? Well, we've already read what Moses, or actually not what Moses said, but what God said through Moses in Deuteronomy. Let's look what Ezekiel would say to a person that has this feeling or this comment. Does God love pagan festivals? Ezekiel chapter 11 and verse number 12. And you shall know that I am the Lord, for you have not walked in my statutes. God says I gave you some statutes, you're not walking in them.

Nor have you executed my judgments. I gave you judgments, you're not following them. But what have you done? But you have done after the manners of the heathen, also could be translated Gentiles or the pagans. You've done after the manners of the heathen that are all around about you. You know, this is after the time that God had warned them before they went into the Promised Land. Now they've been there, and God says, you know what, you did exactly what I told you not to do.

How would Jeremiah respond to the person that says that God loves pagan festivals? Let's go over to Jeremiah chapter 10. These are some scriptures we've covered in the past, but I think they tie into this topic. Jeremiah chapter 10. The principle is the same. Jeremiah chapter 10. Another one of God's prophets. Moses was one.

Of course, Ezekiel was one. And now we turn to Jeremiah. Jeremiah chapter 10. Let's pick it up here in verse number one. It says, here are the words which the Lord speaks to you, O house of Israel. So he's talking to his people through Jeremiah. Thus says the Lord, verse two, do not learn the way of the Gentiles. You know, there's a way that they were living. There is a way that they worship their gods, their false gods.

And God says, do don't learn that way. Don't be dismayed at the signs of heaven, for they, the Gentiles, are dismayed at the signs of heaven. For the customs of the peoples, these are people's customs. These are people's traditions. These are people's ways of worshiping gods. He says they are futile. I think the old King James says vain. And if we were to look it up here in the original Hebrew, it means vain. It means absolutely worthless. Having no value at all.

What would Jesus Christ say to the man who said, God loves pagan festivals? Let's go over to the New Testament now, Mark chapter seven. Mark chapter seven. And again, Jesus Christ was also a prophet. He was the prophet to come. Moses talked about that a long time ago back in the Deuteronomy, that there's coming a prophet in the future like me. Won't be me, but be like me. He'll come from our people. He'll be a brother, be a descendant of ours. And of course, he was talking about the coming Messiah, the coming prophet, Jesus Christ. But Jesus Christ, the Son of God, he would know, has this to say here in Mark chapter seven and verse number seven.

He says, in vain they worship me. Very similar in a way to what was written a long time ago in the book of Jeremiah. Jesus Christ is several generations now down the road, and he's using some of the same verbiage. In vain, it's worthless. It's absolutely no value at all. In vain, they worship me, teaching as doctrines, as truth, the commandments of men. For laying aside, verse eight, the commandment of God, you hold on to something else. You hold tradition of men. He gives some examples here of the washing of pitchers and cups and many other such things you do. Those were nothing that was commanded by God. He said to them in verse nine, all too well, you reject the commandment of God that you may keep your tradition. So Christ is speaking now very, very clearly, too, about we have to be careful not to add to what God says, not to take away, to do what God commands. Let's see what Isaiah would reply to the man who said, God loves pagan festivals. Isaiah chapter 55, another prophet here of God, they're all saying the same thing. Isaiah chapter 55, you know, if somebody keeps saying the same thing, or not somebody, but several different witnesses or prophets of God are saying the same thing, I think that helps us to understand what God's view is on the topic. Isaiah chapter 55, we'll pick it up here in verse number seven. It says, let the wicked forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts. Forsake our way, forsake our thoughts, and let him return into the Lord and he will have mercy. That's the right thing to do when we return to God. God has mercy. And our God, he will abundantly pardon. So this prophet is trying to reach out, isn't he? He's trying to reach out to God's people that have begun to stray. And then he says in verse 8, he says, you know, God says, my thoughts aren't your thoughts.

Neither are your ways, my ways. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, and they are a lot, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts are higher than your thoughts. God's been around a long time. He knows where sin leads. He knows where certain choices lead. And that's why he says, I want you to trust me as a loving father, teaching his sons and daughters, I want you to trust me. I want you to obey me. Not because I'm trying to be hard. Not because I'm trying to be strict, but because I really love you. God knows to the end from the beginning. When it comes to the choice to keep the ways of this world, such as New Year's, or Christmas, or the truthful way of God in the right spirit, I think we need to remind ourselves what God said over and over through his prophets, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Jesus.

New Year's, if we start to look at some history, some further history, we'll see it is a heathen. It's a pagan Roman festival, even going back before Rome. Over the ages of history, the New Year's festivities that had originated in Babylon found their way to Greece, and then they eventually found their way to Rome. The Romans called it Saturnalia, in honor of their false god, Saturn.

Among them, it was extremely popular, just like it is today. It was a time of revelry, okay, a time of drinking. It was a time of partying, and it was a time of orgies, sexual relations with someone other than your spouse. It was Julius Caesar, the emperor of Rome, who instituted the New Year's festival on January 1st. Julius Caesar, of a world-ruling empire at the time, who said, this begins the beginning of a new year.

Again, quoting from 4,000 years of Christmas by Earl Count, the first day of Saturnalia shifted during the lifetime of Rome.

It began around the middle of December and continued until January 1st.

In its midst was December 25th, the day that the Romans calculated was when the sun was at its lowest ever. So we see some of the influence there. Another quote here from the World Book and Psychopedia, in early times the ancient Romans gave each other New Year's gifts of branches from sacred trees. I don't know what makes a tree sacred, but it was apparently something special, some religious significance. And so they give each other New Year's gifts from branches from these sacred trees. In later years, they gave gold-covered nuts or coins imprinted with pictures of Janus. I don't know how many of you know Janus. Janus is the god of gates, or the god of doors, or the god of beginnings. He's two-faced, so he's got a face that looks forward, he's got a face that looks back. So if you haven't heard of Janus, January was named after Janus, who had again two faces. Caesar felt that the month named after this god, January, would be the appropriate door to the year. So, you know, if we look at history, we begin to see how some of these things began to come about. A question I think a good question is asked, how did a festival like this, you know, heathen festival, get tied in with Christianity? How on earth did that ever happen? Well, the answer is found in church history around 325 AD when Emperor Constantine imposed the Catholic version of Christianity on the world. They imposed their view of Christianity on the world at that time. Again, from 4,000 years of Christmas, page 31, there were many immigrants into the ranks of Christianity at this time. The church fathers discovered to their alarm that they were also facing an invasion of pagan customs.

The habit of Saturnalia was too strong to be left behind, and at first the church forbade it, but in vain. So at first they tried to stop it, but it was apparently unstoppable.

So rather than resist the influence of pagan customs, the Catholic fathers compromised and simply syncretized it into their own philosophical version of Christianity. We've talked about syncretism over the years. It's a combination of something that's true with something that's false. To try to put a good label on a bad thing doesn't work, which is why God says, don't add to what I say, don't take away from what I say, because if you combine these two things, what ends up happening is Christianity is paganized rather than the paganized being Christianized. God knew that that's why that would happen, and that's why he said, don't do it.

Let's talk about some of the things that happen here at this time of the year. You've probably heard about the midnight kiss. You know, at the strike of midnight, you're supposed to kiss the first girl that you are there, or if you're a female, you kiss the first guy. Where did that come from? Okay, I've got a little bit of information here. This comes from an editorial post on the internet. Women, you should know. It says, it's New Year's Eve, a holiday marked by revelry resolutions champagne, and last but not least, the infamous stroke of the midnight kiss. As we ready ourselves to count down to the start of the new year, we decided to find out what's behind this curious, often stress-inducing tradition of smooching to what's here in the new year. As it turns out, someone's done some research, as it turns out, people have been locking lips as one year turns into the next since the eighth century BC. Eighth century before Christ. And its meaning has run the gamut from straight-up debauchery. We often don't use that word debauchery. But debauchery is excessive indulgence in sensual pleasures.

Orgies, in other words, or immoral sexual behavior. It runs the gamut from straight-up debauchery to purification to superstition and plain old fun. Sounds like a syncretism. Purification? That sounds good. But debauchery? I don't think so. For superstition? I think there's a lot of that there. According to Kissing Matters, historians date the practice back to the ancient Romans who would throw a big party every New Year's Eve called the Festival of Saturnalia, where they would kiss and generally debauch one another as much as possible. No wonder Rome fell. I'm still quoting. They even see. They even see. No wonder Rome fell. Later on, the English and the Germans would celebrate by kissing the first person they met when the bells told 12 o'clock. So it didn't end. It goes on. It simmers. It doesn't die. Hasn't died to this day. The folklore behind this tradition says the first person you encounter in a new year and the type of encounter you have sets the tone for the rest of the year. Talk about pressure. Not only do you need—and I'm still quoting—not only do you need to make sure you run into a top-notch person at midnight, but they also better be a really good kisser or conversationalist. Otherwise, your year will truly stink. Europeans have traditionally held mask balls. You've probably seen that. You know, they mask themselves. Find that in the Scripture. It's not there. Europeans have traditionally held mask balls in New Year's Eve for hundreds of years. In these traditions, the mask symbolizes evil spirits from the old year, and the kiss after removing the mask is an act of purification. Oh, really? Really?

Even if you're kissing somebody else's spouse, that's an act of purification. The article continues, as we find that many of our traditions have meaning that we never considered—I'm glad somebody actually went and researched it—as we find that we are taking part in superstitions and much more, unquote, somebody that maybe doesn't even have a religious background.

I introduce the topic of the New Year's Day, the Catholic Feast of Circumcision. Let's talk about that a little bit. New Year's Day did not become a Holy Day. Did you know that? A New Year's Day is a Catholic Holy Day. It did not become a Holy Day from the Roman Catholic Church until 487 A.D. when it was declared to be the Feast of Circumcision, quoting the New York Catholic Protectorate. This goes back to 1875 when this thing was published. Our New Year's Day, the Feast of Circumcision, was called the Octave of Christmas as early as 487 A.D. and was instituted by the church to commemorate the ceremony of the Jewish law which the Savior submitted. In the time of Pneumon, the old Roman heathens dedicated the day to Janus to the double-faced deity. Even the Catholics see that. Janus was involved. This is quoting now from the American Book of Days, a compendium of information about holidays, festivals, Christian and Jewish Holy Days. It says, the Feast of Circumcision has been observed in the Roman Church since 487 A.D. and the Anglican Church since 1549 A.D. So it's pretty modern or pretty recent in the Anglican Church. It goes back to the fourth century for the Catholic Church.

Brethren, again, it's probably preaching to the choir here, but there's no place in the Bible that talks about a New Year's observance. There's no place that talks about in the Scripture about observing the circumcision of Jesus Christ. It's not there. Obviously, it was circumcised, but there's no command. There's nothing in the Scriptures at all. God says, don't add to what I say. Don't take away from what I say. And so, the Holy Days of New Year's and a Christmas are observed by many, and the seven festivals that are in the Scriptures are not observed by many, by most. When does God say a New Year begins? Let's go to Exodus chapter 12. Exodus chapter 12. You know, the fact that our modern celebration of January 1st, as New Year's Day is linked directly to paganism, should stop us in our tracks and cause us to reject those customs and those traditions. Those are things that God says he hates. January 1st is a strange day, isn't it, really? It's really just another day, but because it's an arbitrary Roman calendar day that's been proclaimed to be the New Year, somehow it's had some significance. It's really just another day, because really, the New Year starts in the spring. In fact, this year it's in March. It's usually in March or in April. This year it's March 27th. That's the New Year, March 27th, on the Roman calendar.

But January 1st is not the beginning of God's New Year. God's year begins in the spring. We're on Exodus chapter 12, verse 1. Now the Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron in the land of Egypt, and he's saying, this month, which we'll later find out is a beeb, shall be your beginning of months. God says it's mine, but it's going to be yours, too. We're in this together. This month shall be your beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year to you. And then he starts talking a little bit about something that's going to happen on the 10th day of the first month. He just bypasses the first day of the first month. He goes, jumps to the 10th day. Now the 10th day of this month, every man shall take for himself a lamb, according to the house of his father, a lamb for a household. We know that in the 10th day of that month, the first month of the year, they took that lamb and they held it until the 14th. When that lamb was killed, that blood was put on the doorposts so that the firstborn would live, would not die.

Of course, the Passover lamb was picturing Jesus Christ. So even then, on the first day of God's year, he doesn't instruct his people to observe anything. First day of the first month, there's nothing at all. Some things that happen on the 10th, some things that happen on the 14th, and of course the 15th, we get into the Passover and the days of 11 bread, which happens in the spring.

Brother God simply wants us to use that as a time marker. The first day of the first month is when his year starts, and then that's when we begin for the time marker of his seasons and of his holy day festivals. It counts the days to sunset, the 14th, for Passover. The observance of that sacrifice, the penalty being for our sins, the Passover. So God tells us when the beginning of the year has to be so that we know how to observe the festivals. So it's used primarily by God to determine when his holy days are. We need to remember that God Almighty is the one who created the universe and set the heavenly bodies in place, set time. He's kind of the master timekeeper.

It's by his master clock that time is determined.

Let's notice that this first month has a name. Let's go to Exodus chapter 34, verse number 18.

Follow the word of Eve, A-B-I-B. Exodus chapter 34 verse 18.

God is talking about the Feast of Unleavened Bread here in this context. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread as I commanded you in the appointed time of the month of, not only the first month, of course, but the month of Abib. For it's in that month that you came out of Egypt.

So that's the name of the first month. It's Abib. Later on, the Jews called it Nisan or Nisan. It's a Persian Babylonian word, having the same meaning. I'll just refer you to Esther chapter three and verse seven. You can look that up later. Esther chapter three verse seven says in the first month, which is the month of Nisan, Nisan, very similar to the power company, not exactly the same. I think they had two S's and the two S's and Nisan? Yeah. One S in God's Persian name of the first month, Nisan. So God's year begins in the spring. It doesn't begin in the middle of a dead winter. It begins in the spring. And God has the authority to set the date of when the year begins. He created the heavenly bodies and the seasons and the earth's rotations and the days and the lunar phases indicate the length of a month. The orbit of the earth around the sun takes the length of the year. He put all that in place. So was the month of Abib. And Israel came out of Egypt under the captivity of Moses and the appointed time. God had that plan to happen in the first month of His year right from the beginning. We have an enemy that tries to cloud things, tries to confuse things, he tries to deceive, and he's cleverly deceived the world. Most of the world are believing that New Year's begins on January 1st. He's been very successful. You know, I'll just refer to Daniel chapter 7 and verse 25, but it talks about a great false religious system which thinks to change times and laws. That's Daniel chapter 7 and verse 25.

And this system, this Babylonian system, has deliberately thought to change the beginning of the year, of God's year, and it really does a really good job of hiding the truth.

It just does a good job of hiding God's plan of salvation for mankind that he revealed through the festivals.

Now, there's another symbolism of New Year's Eve festivities, a pagan symbol, and you probably have seen it over the years. It's the New Year's baby. Seen that one? Okay. This comes from a historical book, New Year, its history, its customs, and its superstition. Okay, I think they say that pretty well. I'll quote here, actually, the New Year's baby is far older than he looks. In ancient Greece, so this would have been before the Roman Empire, in ancient Greece, it was customary at the great festival of Dionysus to parade a baby cradled in a windowing basket. This was taken to symbolize the annual or periodic rebirth of that God as a spirit of fertility.

There you go. So the symbol of a baby for New Year's is a common pagan practice, and it continues on to this day, doesn't it? It continues to this day. It says the Catholic church disallowed it at first for centuries. Eventually, these religious leaders gave into the pressure, allowing infants to be used during the celebrations that took place during this time of year. But with one adjustment, the New Year's baby was transformed by the Catholic church into the babe of Bethlehem, a symbol of Christ. If you can't beat him, join him, I suppose, you know? The New Year's baby is no less a symbol of Dionysus, a Greek god of wine.

It was in his honor that the Greeks held this festival in January. It was to honor Dionysus, the god of wine. It's probably not a surprise, then, that New Year's Day holds the record for the most amount of alcohol that is consumed than any other day of the year.

You know, as sophisticated as sometimes we like to think ourselves to be, many have either knowingly or unknowingly been partaking in some of these customs. What about Father Time?

Father Time, another symbol of New Year's celebration, which actually also has heathenistic origins. It's the familiar figure of a white-haired man carrying a scythe. What does he represent? An ancient Greek god, false god, Cronos, spelled with a c, although some spell with a k, Cronos. Cronos is from the name Cronos we derive our chronograph, which measures time, or chronology, which measures things in sequential time, Cronos.

Among the Greek gods, Cronos originally cut a swath of human sacrifice with his sharpened scythe, the silent reaper, anciently reaped little children in horrible episodes of mythical cannibalism. In fact, Cronos knew that apparently a child of his was going to supersede him as as the leader, a ruler, so he ate his own children so they could not become the next ruler.

Cronos and Saturn. The Romans had an agricultural god named Saturn, we touched on him already, who was in many ways the same as the Greek god Cronos. The festival known as Saturnalia honors Saturn, or perhaps his predecessor, the Greek god Cronos.

Strangers it seems, professing Christians in the world praise and practice customs that have some of these origins, these hedonistic origins. Never really understanding that maybe that they are pagan and origin and they're not really condoned by God. Some of them may be doing it without even knowing and maybe some of us were in that same boat before God called us.

And yet with all of this many believe that God loves pagan festivals.

With all the things we've read from all the prophets, how serious is God about these hedonistic practices? Let's go over to Leviticus chapter 18. Leviticus chapter 18.

We've already heard from God's prophets regarding this issue. We've heard from Moses, Ezekiel, Jeremiah, Isaiah, Jesus. Let's take a look at another thing that God inspired Moses to write. And let's notice these passages really, really carefully. You know, when God rescued the 12 tribes of Israel, let's look at what he says here. He talks about when he released them from the slavery of Egypt and began to teach them his ways. Let's notice what he says. Leviticus chapter 18 and verse 1. You know, they were steeped in some of these pagan practices in Egypt, beginning to calling them out of that. Leviticus chapter 18 verse 1.

God spoke to Moses, saying, I want you to say this to my people. Speak to the children of Israel, and this is what I want you to say to them. I am the Lord your God. Verse 3, According to the doings of the land of Egypt where you dwelt, you shall not do.

And according to the doings of the land of Canaan where I am about to take you, you shall not do. You shall not walk in their ordinances. You shall observe, verse 4, my judgments and keep my ordinances to walk in them because I am the Lord your God. You shall therefore keep my statutes, verse 5, and my judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them. I am the Lord. Let's jump to verse number 24 here.

It says, don't defile yourselves with any of these things. God says they change you. They poison you. They affect you. Don't defile yourselves with any of these things, for by all of these things the nations have become defiled. These people that were there before you became defiled and now are defiled. God says, I can't stand it any longer. That's one of the reasons, you know, once their iniquity was full, I'm punishing them and I'm allowing you to come into this promise by this good land.

Verse 24, don't defile yourselves with any of these things, for by all of these things the nations are defiled, which I'm casting out before you, for the land is defiled. Therefore, I visit the punishment of its iniquity. God says, it's sin. It's wrong. The land is defiled. Verse 25. Therefore, I visit the punishment of its iniquity upon it, and the land vomits out its inhabitants. Pretty graphic. It's nauseous to me.

God says, after a while, you can't be more tolerated. I'm going to do something about it. Verse 26, coming back again, how many times does God have to tell us, you shall therefore keep my statutes and my judgments. Make them yours.

You shall not commit any of these abominations, either any of your own nation or any stranger who dwells among you. For all of these abominations, it uses that strong word again, the men of the land have done who were before you, and thus the land is defiled.

And then he gives a warning. Verse 28, lest the land vomit you out when you defile it, as it vomited out the nations that were before you.

You know, again, God doesn't tolerate these things indefinitely, does he? He mentions he'll do something about it, no matter whether it's a nation, no matter whether it's a tribe, no matter whether it's an individual. It doesn't matter. Verse 29, notice a warning to all of us as individuals, whoever commits any of these abominations, the persons who commit them are going to be cut off from among their people. I would suggest that God is really serious about pagan festivals, and their practices, and their customs. Verse number 30, therefore you shall keep my ordinance so that you do not commit any of these abominable customs which were committed before you, and that you do not defile yourselves by them. I am your God. I'm your God. I'm the Lord your God. God basically says to you and to me, these things will harm you, and they don't honor me.

Let's go to Psalm 106. Psalm 106.

We know that God punished Egypt with the ten slags in order to free his people Israel from slavery. He parted the Red Sea. He led them to safety. He brought them manna from heaven. He protected them from very strong military nations that were around them. He delivered them to the Promised Land. He drove out those other nations that are enemies before them.

And how does God's people respond to God in turn? Let's see what the psalmist says here in Psalm 106.

We'll pick it up in verse number seven.

The psalmist says, our fathers in Egypt did not understand your wonders. I would agree. I would agree. My thoughts are not your thoughts. They didn't understand your wonders. They didn't remember the multitude of your mercies, but they rebelled by the sea, the Red Sea. They soon forgot his works. They did not wait for his counsel. But they lusted, exceedingly in the wilderness, and they tested God in the desert. Verse 19.

I guess I jumped from verse seven to verse 13. Sorry about that. Verse 13, they forgot his works. They did not wait for his counsel. Verse 14, but they lusted exceedingly in the wilderness, and they tested God in the desert. Verse 19, they made a calf in Horeb, and they worshiped the molded image. If you remember the story we talked about this, they called that molded image Jehovah.

And they said, this is the God that brought us out of Egypt, and they're calling the calf Jehovah or Yahweh. God says, they're not worshiping me. They say they are, but they're not. They're saying they're worshiping the calf. This golden image, which doesn't have life or breath. Verse 19, they made a calf in Horeb, and they worshiped the molded image. And thus, by doing so, they changed their glory into the image of an ox that eats grass. They forgot God, their Savior, who had done great things in Egypt. Wondrous works in the land of Ham, awesome things by the Red Sea. They forgot God, and they began to do things their own way. They began to worship in their own way. They began to worship with false customs.

God says, they changed their glory. They weren't worshiping me. They forgot me. Verse 21.

Verse 24, and they despised the pleasant land. They did not believe His word. God says, don't add to what I say. Don't take away from what I say. Like we heard in the sermon, that we live by every word of God. He has something to say about tattoos. He has something to say about a lot of things. It gets us up to us, and whether we'll listen and obey. They did not believe verse 24, His word, but they complained in their tents, and they did not heed the voice of their God. They didn't heed the voice of the Lord. Verse 28. They joined themselves also to Baal of Peor. He ate sacrifices made to the dead, and thus they provoked Him to anger. You know, God's merciful, and you know, He can take a lot, and He gets angry, doesn't He? He grieves. We grieve. We get angry. We're no different, and God were made in His image. He gets angry, too.

So the Israelites thought they knew better. They decided to do things their own way, and it didn't result very well, did it? The result wasn't good. Verse number 34. They didn't destroy the peoples, which they were told to do, concerning whom the Lord had commanded them, but they mingled. They mingled. This is a human tendency to mingle, to synchronize, to compromise. They mingled with the Gentiles and learned their works. They began to learn something that had nothing to do with God, but they learned the Gentiles' works. And then it ultimately led to serving them. Verse 36. They served their idols, which became a snare to them. And then, how far it goes, eventually, over time, given enough generations, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters to demons.

Verse 38. They shed innocent blood, the blood of their own sons and daughters.

Verse 39. They were defiled, just the very thing that God did not want them to become. They became. And they played the harlot, spiritual adultery, by their own deeds, their own ways, their own choices. For the years, a modern attitude of compromise, ah, you know, it's okay for you, it's okay for me, and you know, we're going to put up with each other. And yeah, I know that maybe some of these things have pagan origins. You know, they come from false gods like Cronos and Dionysus and Saturn. A lot of people don't care. Some don't care. Some know, but you know, we changed it. We put on a Christian label on this, and others just frankly don't care. There's all different kinds of attitudes out there. An attitude of, I don't care, and an attitude of really just disrespect for God for those that maybe should know better. Excessive alcohol and drug use for mischievous behavior has become common at this time of the year. Today, New Year's Eve has become a time or an excuse, I think that's maybe a better way, an excuse to be able to do the debauchery, an excuse to be able to have excess drinking, to have a party, and then turn over a new year, new leaf on the next day.

Well, God eventually intervened and say enough's enough. It's going to be a change. It's going to be a permanent change. You know, we know He intervened in the time of the children of Israel, didn't He? In fact, He took them captive. They went into captivity. So that's enough. Let's look at 2 Kings 17. Let's look at the reason why God took them into captivity. 2 Kings 17.

We'll pick it up here in verse number 15. 2 Kings 17. Verse number 15. It says, They rejected His statutes and His covenant. And they made an agreement to obey His statutes and His laws. They rejected His statutes and His covenant that He had made with their fathers and His testimonies, which He testified against them, and they followed vanity. There's that word again. They followed something that's worthless. Probably more than worthless. It actually causes harm. It's dangerous. They followed vanity and they became vain.

And they went after the heathen that were around about them, concerning whom the Lord had said, Don't do like them. You know, the Northern tribes, once they went, you know, they were moved from Palestine, went to Assyria, they never came back. What was the result of Israel following the customs of the heathen nations around them? Let's look at verse 18. Therefore, the Lord was very angry with Israel and He removed them from His sight. Yes, angry. There was none left with the tribe of Judah alone. And Judah did not keep the commandments of the Lord their God, but they walked in the statutes of Israel, which they made. Not God's statutes, but their own. For the nations around them, I suppose. Verse 20, and the Lord rejected all of the descendants of Israel, afflicted them, delivered them into the hand of plunderers until He cast them from His sight. He's not happy with pagan customs and festivals. He doesn't love them. He hates them. Just the opposite of what that person said. God doesn't love pagan festivals. He hates them. There's an abomination to Him.

Verse 21, for He tore Israel from the house of David, and they made Jeroboam the son of Nebat king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel from following the Lord and made them commit a great sin.

For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam, which He did. They didn't depart from them. Once this thing gets started, it's tough to turn it around. Verse 23, until the Lord removed Israel out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the prophets. The Lord doesn't do anything without first revealing it to the prophets. He warned them, didn't He, over and over and over again. So this is where it's going to lead. So this wouldn't be a surprise. Verse 23, until the Lord removed Israel out of His sight, as He had said by all His servants the prophets. So Israel was carried away from their own land to Assyria as it is this day. And they never did return.

For them, history is just about ready to repeat itself. We're probably getting closer.

We've already seen, I think from Scripture and from historical sites, that those false worship practices go all the way back to Babylon, all the way back to Mesopotamia. But I think what is less known is that they still continue today. They're still simmering. And they will continue up to the time of the return of Jesus Christ. This thing isn't going away. God is calling us to come out of this, no doubt. But He's saying that this is going to be with us until the end of the age. How do we know that? Let's go to Revelation chapter 18.

Revelation chapter 18.

We're going to pick it up here in verse number one. This Babylonian system runs deep, runs through our culture today, and we'll continue to run through the culture up to the return of Christ. Prophetic chapter, the Apostle John is writing what God the Father gave to Jesus. Jesus is giving to John. John is writing it down. It says, After these things I saw another angel coming down from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illuminated with His glory. So this sounds like something that's seen, and He's coming with great authority. Verse two, And He cried mightily with a loud voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen. And Ephesus is kind of almost saying, this is it. When you say it twice, it's finally fallen. It hasn't fallen yet. It's going to fall. So Babylon and its influence and the false worship and the practices that will continue to the end of the age, God finally says, it's over. Enough is enough, and it's done. Verse three, For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. Wow! No one's been immune to this. All nations have been influenced by these false ways. Verse three, All nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornications. The kings of the earth have committed fornication with her. They're in. They're in with this thing.

They've been affected and committed fornication with her. Verse four, And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people. God loves these things. Absolutely not. Separate yourself from these things. Unless you share in her sins, unless you receive of her plagues. God calls a fade a spade. He says, This is sin. These things are against my thoughts and my ideas and my ways. God can't speak any more plainly, I don't think. And he are clearly, whether it be the Old Testament or the New Testament. Verse five, For her sins have reached to heaven.

I think it's kind of similar to what Sodom and Geburah God says, You know, I've been hearing about this. It's come up to me. God has remembered her iniquities. God speaks as clearly as crystal. These are sin, bad stuff, iniquities, period.

Doesn't matter whether it's the Old Testament or the New Testament. God speaks the same message.

He doesn't change. He's the same today and forever. Yesterday, today and forever.

Brother and I have given this message today because it's just a warning to you and me that we don't want to slowly get sucked into some of the things that we see around us in our culture because it looks good, looks like fun.

Because the culture does influence us, no doubt, as Christians. And we can be trapped. We can slowly compromise. Let's look at one last scripture here, Revelation chapter 22. We're here in Revelation. Let's go a couple of few more chapters over. And the Bible tells us the things that we need to do in order to be a part of God's family, in order to be part of the Kingdom of God. That we are to walk in faith, we are to walk in trust and in obedience to our God, the one who gives us eternal life. Let's look at what it says here in verse number 14 that God inspired John to write down here. Revelation 22 verse 14. It says, blessed are those who do His commandments.

I think you and I want to be blessed. Blessed are those who do His commandments. What kind of blessings? That they may have the right to the tree of life, and that they may enter through the gates into the city. Into the city where God says we will live forever. But notice verse 15. There's another group of people. But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters and whoever loves and practices a lie. Further, when some say that God loves pagan festivals, that's a lie. Let's call it what it is. He doesn't.

When some say God's love excludes no one nor their festivals, that's a lie.

When some say New Year's is pagan, but I'm going to keep it anyway regardless of its origins, you know, I think we all individually, you know, God's opened up our minds, so we definitely have more accountability. We have to ask ourselves, am I being true here?

To Revelation 22, verse 15 to make sure I'm not loving and practicing a lie.

Does God really mean what He says?

Does He really mean what He revealed to His people in the scripture? Because New Year's is a lie. And to practice it and love it is a lie. Oh yeah, I know it kind of looks good. It seems attractive. It looks like fun. But should we observe it?

So going forward, what will you and I be doing this evening or in future New Year's Eve's? Will we be obeying and faithful to our God with a clear instruction He's given to us? Will we worship Him in spirit and in truth? Because although we live in this world, He does tell us we should come out of it to have the right to the tree of life and to be a part of the family of God.

So