Romans 8 -- A Christmas Story

Colossians 2:16 Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. 17 These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.

This verse is a very powerful prophecy. So far we have seen that every festival from the Old Testament has been prophetic concerning the coming of Jesus Christ, His death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and outpouring of the Spirit on the church. We can also easily say that the feast of Atonement and the Feast of weeks will also be prophetic. Because of this I have been searching the scriptures to find a religious festival that would be prophetic for the rapture.

Amos 8:9 “In that day,” declares the Sovereign Lord, “I will make the sun go down at noon and darken the earth in broad daylight. 10 I will turn your religious festivals into mourning and all your singing into weeping. I will make all of you wear sackcloth and shave your heads. I will make that time like mourning for an only son and the end of it like a bitter day.

This verse supported the idea that the day of the Lord appears during “your religious festivals”. But it is plural, this is referring to more than one festival. Also these festivals involve singing. There were numerous other reasons why this pointed to Hanukkah, but Hanukkah and Christmas are two religious festivals that come at the same time. Also, although Hanukkah and many of the religious festivals are not particularly noted for singing, Christmas is with Christmas carols being a key tradition to celebrate this holiday. This caroling is done on Christmas eve, December 24th. This is also very interesting because by our calendar it is still the 24th whereas by the Jewish calendar the day starts with the evening and this would be the 25th. The reason this is interesting is that the 25th would be the 8th day after Hanukkah this year and in Luke it is thought that the Lord and the disciples going up the mount of transfiguration was prophetic concerning the rapture and that took place “about the eighth day”. Generally the Bible is very specific with dates so this ambiguity really stands out. I was also concerned with this verse:

Hebrews 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching. If we are seeing the day approaching we should be assembling together.

However, Joel says that the sign that the day is approaching is a pandemic that causes us not to gather together. There is really only one church meeting that is required for us to keep and that is the Lord’s table, this sabbath day for Christians is a celebration of the coronation of Jesus and also of the wedding of Jesus, both of which are part of the shadow of the rapture of the Bride. So based on this I felt that the Lord’s rapture should take place during a day when we are all gathered together. You don’t want to forsake that gathering even though there is great pressure from the world to do so. Then finally it hit me, these seven festivals in the Old Testament are festivals for the Jews. There are really only two big yearly festivals given to Christians to keep. The first is “Easter” which celebrates the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. That is where our year begins and that is a celebration of new life and new beginnings. The second festival is Christmas which is at the end of the year and superficially is a celebration of Jesus birth even though we know that Jesus was not born on this day. Pagan holidays for the resurrection of the Sun were adopted for this celebration. Our year begins with the new birth at Easter and we all look forward to Christmas, the favorite day of the year.

Interestingly I saw that 2 Corinthians a book on the New Testament ministry is all about the festival of Hanukkah. Paul equated the story of Hanukkah with the New Testament ministry. The purpose of this ministry is that the Lord’s will would be done on earth as it is in heaven and that His kingdom would come. Each day of that festival there is more light. We saw the “fulfillment” of this during Hanukkah this year as each day new light concerning the corruption and lies of those in power trying to wipe out the pure worship of God was revealed. But now it seems the gospels are equated with the story of Christmas. Romans is the gospel according to Paul and chapter 8 is the “tip of the spear” when talking about the overcomers, those in the first rapture.

My first reaction to this is that Paul was writing before there was a Christmas holiday celebration. He predated the story about Santa and the elves and the reindeer, etc. This is true, Paul does not refer to any of that. However, the story of the gospel is here in all its glory. Xmas is a counterfeit of this. Satan has no choice, the story is so powerful he must do something to counteract it. Xmas is the counterfeit that the spiritual forces in the air create with people whose mind is set on the flesh.

Instead of the rapture they have a magical Santa who visits every house. Instead of the gift of Jesus Christ they have toys built by elves, instead of the truth they have a lie, instead of Jesus Christ Lord of all, they have Satan, the prince of this world, instead of praying with the Spirit interceding our behalf they have a "letter to Santa".

Instead of a new heart of flesh they have Scrooge getting a new heart or the Grinch getting a new heart.

True Christians are never 'concerned' about what the 'world' (does or thinks)...

It seems that no one reads the attached Pdf files.

The Gift of Christ Jesus
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, 2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law was powerless to do because it was weakened by the flesh,God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the
law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

It is fascinating to me that there are two distinct variations here, those that live according to the flesh and those who live according to the Spirit. No where is that more evident than in the celebration of Christmas for Christians versus the celebration of Xmas for non Christians. We have seen the “battle to put Christ back into Christmas”.
This festival reveals those who have the mind of the spirit versus those who have the mind of the flesh.

5 Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.6 The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. 7 The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. 8 Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God.
Once again, there are those whose mind is on the flesh.

You have Christmas parties, gifts, and all kinds of ads to get you to buy stuff you don’t need. On the other hand you have beautiful Christmas plays and pageants, beautiful hymns of praise, candle light services and many other examples of those who are celebrating with the mind set on the Spirit.

In this festival you are in the Spirit and Spirit is in you.
9 You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ. 10 But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. 11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies because of his Spirit who lives in you.
12 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we have an obligation—but it is not to the flesh, to live according to it. 13 For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.

We celebrate Easter at a sunrise service. But this holiday is celebrated in the house. This holiday comes with an obligation. I have always been against the commercial aspects and worldly aspects of this holiday. Yet even so there is an obligation on you because your children will not understand and will think that being a Christian means you are stingy and cheap. So I have always given gifts to my children, I just don’t pretend that there is a “Santa”, I don’t watch the most egregious children’s Christmas shows with reindeer and Santa, and I try to purge the celebration from the demands of the flesh. I find it interesting that “Santa” is merely a rearrangement of the word “Satan”. The story is a lie and they try to force parents to lie to their children and then have children equate this lie with the Bible. If Santa flying around in a sleigh is a lie that was told to you by people you trusted, what about the rapture? It is an evil poison designed to innoculate young children from believing and receiving the gospel. However, according to the Spirit there is an obligation to treat others with love and charity during this time. We even call it “the Christmas spirit”.

make your 'point' in a conscience manner' PLEASE'!!!

This is the one religious festival where there are clearly two sides to it, the fleshly and the spiritual.

This is unlike Passover, Hanukkah, Festival of weeks, etc. This is what Paul describes in Romans 8, those that walk according to the Spirit and those that walk according to the Flesh.

My point is that chapter 8 is the culmination of the gospel of salvation, and it also is fully depicted in our celebration of Christmas.

Christians, unlike Jews, have 2 yearly festivals: Easter and Christmas. They are a shadow of things to come. Christmas is a shadow of the rapture of the first fruits. I explain this briefly in the attached Pdf.

The adoption to sonship = rapture of the overcomers
14 For those who are led by the Spirit of God Are the children of God. 15 The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.” 16 The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. 17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.

Christmas is a holiday for children. My parents really went all out, I would be up at the crack of dawn and sure enough something had happened from the night before. New gifts were there and the stockings were filled. Those gifts testified that you were children of your parents and heirs. The rapture is a testimony that all who are raptured are children of God and co heirs with God. This term “adoption” refers to a legal declaration that you are heir to the father’s business. This is a big deal in families where a father has a
great business. Some children of the father may find themselves disqualified from being heirs, that is sad, but it happens. At the rapture some will be left behind, they will get a second chance but it will still be sad. As it says in Amos if you are not raptured on that day it will be a bitter day for you. Your singing will turn to mourning.
The idea of Santa in the middle of the night coming down chimneys and giving gifts is the photographic negative of Jesus Christ rapturing all the overcomers who are likened to a treasure and the rapture to the Lord coming as a thief (by coming down the chimney?). In the world those the world despises will very often turn out to be the ones the Lord treasures. The “Cinderella” that does all the work so the evil sisters can go to all the balls. Imagine waking up on this Christmas day and instead of finding gifts under your tree you find all those who were doing all the work have been taken.

18 I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. 19 For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. 20 For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope21 that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

Christmas is all about wearing brand new Christmas clothes. There is a glorious celebration and children wait in eager expectation for this day. In the rapture we are “liberated from the bondage of decay”. He doesn’t just say “believers” but rather “creation”. What about our pets? If you were raptured what would happen to your dog or cat? Creation is waiting eagerly because they all will be liberated from decay.

22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. 23 Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? 25 But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently.

This is the hope of the gospel. The rapture is likened to the birth of the manchild. Once again Paul is talking about the hope that we wait for patiently, just like we had to wait each year for Christmas.

Pray for what we ought versus the “letter to Santa”.
26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans. 27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

Another part of this religious festival is that kids are to write a letter to Santa praying for things they want. This can be fleshly or it can be spiritual with the Spirit interceding for God’s people in accordance with the will of God.

28 And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. 29 For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. 30 And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified.

These are the things we need. We need to be conformed to the image of His Son, we need to know the firstborn Son of God and we need to be born again to be the children of God. We need to be called, we need to be justified, and after all that we need to be glorified. Again, the rapture is the glorification of those who have been born again, called and justified.

A festival of gifts
31 What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? 33 Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. 34 Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

This is another aspect of this holiday. “Santa knows whose been naughty and nice”. There is a judgement on this holiday. There are those who get “coal in stocking”. But for others God “gives them all things”. The best gift is Jesus but with Jesus we also get a lot of other gifts.

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers,39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

This is a holiday that is all about the love of God. But it is also about conquering through Him who loved us. Conquering what? A major story is “the Christmas Carol” that talks about scrooge getting a new heart. This was then turned into a cartoon with “How the Grinch stole Christmas” by Dr. Seuss. This is a holiday where we conquer selfishness and greed.

The Christmas story is all about welcoming the birth of God's son. The rapture of the Man child is also a story about the birth of God's son, not the firstborn, but of the many brothers into the image and likeness of the firstborn Son of God.

The great conjunction was Monday evening, around 7-10 pm EST, so tonight will be 3 days since that time.