Isn’t love keeping God’s commandments?

“If you love me, keep my commandments. Blessed is he that keeps my commandments, and teaches men likewise; but cursed is he that breaks my commandments, and teaches men likewise. He shall be called the least in the kingdom of heaven.”

If keeping God’s commandments is the essential factor in love and loving God,then it is central to God’s salvation plan; and if the Jews reject the false Jesus being presented by the Roman controlled Gentile Churches, and keep God’s commandments, they believe in Jesus and are saved, even though they don’t know it.

It is not essential to say I believe in Jesus; but it is essential to do it…  I will show you my faith by what I do, said James the apostle!  It is the works of charity that fulfill all the commandments and the prophets.  Love is being your brother’s keeper.  If your brother comes to you naked and destitute and you do not give him his daily needs, your religion is worthless.

I don’t care what name you claim to believe; that’s the bottom line!  Jews don’t have to learn to care for others, they are doing it, but just look at the mess the Gentiles have made in the world.  Those are their brothers and sisters who are poor and homeless.

Where are the billionaire Gentile Christian Churches?  Take a trip to Israel.  I defy you to find homeless in the streets.  Don’t worry about the Jews being saved, worry about the Gentile Christians and their converted blind Messianic Jews!!!

My advice to you Jews, who struggle with whether Christianity is right or wrong, forget it, search your Bibles to see how to live your lives in peace with the world and your brothers.

My advice to you Gentiles, whether you are Christians or not, is to leave the Jews alone, and raise up your Messianic converts to teacher status.  Then listen to them or get ready to receive your consequences, which is the only reason Jesus is coming.

My advice to you Messianic Jews, who are sure that God called you out from amongst your nation Israel to become a bridge to the Gentile world:  Your sole purpose is to bring salvation to the Gentiles, and not the other way around.  Wake-up from the hypnotic spell the Romans have cast upon you, by using sorcery, intrigue, and murder.

The Gentiles have stolen our Jewish heritage, which is the kingdom of God Jesus brought to Israel.  Your Jewish Messiah Jesus, your Jewish Bible, and the good news Jews possess, have been taken from you by the Gentiles who have trampled them under their feet.  They are the thieves that have stolen your rightful heritage.  Leave the non-Christianized Jews alone.

My advice to Gentiles, who are neither Christians nor Jews, is to give up the lies pushed upon you by your perverted religious leaders and get the truth directly from your Bibles, concerning your fellow man and how to love God.  When you hate anybody on this planet, you’ve crossed over the only boundary God placed around the heathen.

For not all Israel is of Israel; neither are all Christians of Jesus.  For it is not whom you follow, or what you say you believe that will save you; but what you do that will save you!

To be continued…

Christ Himself is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity. And He came and preached peace to you who were afar off and to those who were near. For through Him we both have access by one Spirit to the Father.   (Ephesians 2:14-22)

St. Paul’s argument in Chapter 2 of his Epistle to the Ephesians is that the coming of the Messiah has meant the end to the distinction between Jew and Gentiles, between the Nation of Israel and the nations of the world.  God has overcome all human divisions through the cosmic salvation brought about in Jesus the Word of God become flesh.  Even “the middle wall of separation” – that wall which prevented the Gentiles from entering into the Jerusalem Temple sanctuary which was by Jewish custom reserved for male Jews only – has been broken down, making it possible for all people of the world to have access to God and to salvation in the Church.

For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.  There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.   (Galatians 3:27-28 RSV)

Strangely in Orthodox history, the Church eventually reconstructs a dividing wall not only between believers and non-believers, but also between Orthodox and non-Orthodox Christians, and then even between the ordained Orthodox and the non-ordained.    For ultimately the iconostasis is built as a re-established dividing wall of separation to keep all but the elite away from the altar; this, despite the clear references throughout the New Testament to the dividing walls being ended by Christ (see for example Matthew 27:51 or Hebrews 8:1-6, 9:6-11, 10:19-25).

George Fedotov in his THE RUSSIAN RELIGIOUS MIND writes critically of what happened to Christianity in its early history because of its success in converting the Roman Empire to the faith:

“The ancient Church was the heir of the cult of both the Synagogue and the Hellenistic mysteries. … The mysteries were destined for the few, for the initiates only.  Yet since the whole Empire belonged to the initiates, the mysteries were brought forth to the masses.   The danger of this vulgarization was met by a retroactive process.  The Church now tried to protect and to hide the mysteries again, particularly the Eucharist, which is the core of the Church life and its cult.  Hence the tendency, and afterward the rule of pronouncing secretly the prayers of consecration as well as many others; the development of the altar railing into the high Iconostasis, completely hiding the sanctuary from the lay people.  Hence also, under the use of late neoplatonic theurgical language, the new verbal vestment of mysteries, which made them sublime and inaccessible, even dangerous for the unworthy…”  (p. 52, Volume 3 of his collected works). 

The solid and high Iconostasis was the rebuilding of the middle wall torn down by Christ.  Though some in the Orthodox world would defend it saying the wall merely holds the Icons which are windows into heaven.  But it would be strange to erect a solid wall where none existed just to place a window in it.   And we are allowed to look into heaven but not into the altar?

We are baptized into Christ – this is the fulfillment of the theological notion that God became human so that humans might become God.  We are united to God in the mysteries of Baptism and the Eucharist, but then separated from one another by a wall which seems to declare that for some the mystery of Baptism was not all that effective and leaves them still on the other side – the wrong side – of a wall which Christ supposedly had torn down according to St. Paul.

The oneness of the Body of Christ though is preserved in the words of the Liturgy in which we continue to pray in the “we” and “us.”   Let us lift up our hearts, let us give thanks to the Lord.   All the baptized faithful participate together in

Christ Liberating Prisoners at Dachau Concentration Camp

the elevation and consecration of the gifts.    “For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord”   (Romans 8:38-39 RSV).

Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself  being the chief corner stone, in whom the whole building, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.

The parish is the place where we live out our relationship to Christ and to our fellow Christians within the Body of Christ.  St. Paul’s very description of a Christian is that we are part of the household of God.  One Christian is no Christian.  We can only be a Christian in relationship to all other Christians but especially in relationship with the Christians in the local community where we both receive and become the Body of Christ.

Nothing’s changed… besides it’s better than what the Gentiles are going to receive for doing it wrong, if that’s any consolation.  It’s the only role on earth that guarantees salvation.  Whereas, you Gentile Christians had better make sure your act is the right one, for the same guy that you claim to follow, said:  The Jews that fall over me shall be broken, but the Gentiles whom I shall fall upon shall be pulverized into dust.

What is dust, is dead; but what is broken can be healed.  Christian Jews have a very special gift from God to help the Gentiles believe the truth about Jesus, but don’t expect to be thanked for doing it.  Rather than worry about people hating you for doing God’s work, prepare yourselves for the slaughter.

Now, if Jews are sent to help the deceived Gentiles believe the truth about Jesus (the gospel), then there must be lies about Jesus; and if all the people who claim to believe in Jesus, and God, and the Bible, cannot find a lie about Jesus, it’s because they are the liars!  For salvation is of the Jews! Otherwise, Jesus was the liar!  And you Gentiles are following Him in vain!

If the Messianic Jews hide their talent your Father in heaven gave you, which is the ability to teach the truth about God and Jesus, you will be treated just like the Gentiles when Jesus comes, because you were sent to save them.  This is why the prophet Ezekiel said, If you see a man erring and you do not correct him, and he dies in his sin, you are guilty of his blood; but if you tell him to correct his error, and he dies in his sin, you are blood guiltless (not guilty).

Therefore, your own Jewish families, who think you are nuts, will be much better off than you on Judgment Day.  Each of you Jews has to learn respect for the other, which is love.

The Jew called to work for the Messiah in Christianity is not wrong, but is misguided until they give up the Roman lie that Jesus is God and the Scriptures will heal them.  The non-Christian Jews are called by the same God to reject the false Messiah of the Gentiles that is now presented to the world, even though they are using Jesus’ real name.

The Jews will be saved by their faith in keeping the commandments in their Bible; while the Messianic Jews will only be saved if they keep the commandments in the whole Bible and accept the truth about God the Father and Jesus the Son.  Messianic Jews and Gentile Christians must prove their faith by keeping God’s commandments.  Therefore both sides of the Jewish question will be saved by faith.  For the just live by faith.

The time has come for each of you to learn you are two parts to the same plan of God, which is why the book of Revelation Chapter 11 speaks about two olive trees.  An olive tree in the scriptures represents Israel or the Jews, and the Bible is telling us there are two parts of Israel.  One Jew is called to represent the Messiah Jesus for the Gentiles and the truth about Jesus and God, who are actually our long lost brothers known as the ten lost tribes of Israel.

The Church of Jesus is for Jews only!  Jesus threw the doors of Judaism open to all Men, because the Jews had made their religion a private club.  When God had intended them to proselytize the whole human race.  Jesus commanded the Apostles to search for the lost sheep of Israel.

Yes, the lost ten tribes of Israel, who were scattered amongst all the nations over three thousand years ago, were recalled back to Israel.  God called them out of the East, the West, the North, and the South, long before the Diaspora when Rome scattered the Jews of Jesus’ time around the Roman empire.

The Jews of today are from the three unlost tribes of Israel.  The ten lost tribes were Israelites, Jews if you will.  They are they who know His voice and follow Him.  The regathered lost tribes do not know they are the lost Israelites.

Thousands of years have separated them from the knowledge of their forefathers and from their God of Israel.  Yet, God had a plan for them prophesied in the Old Testament.  God did not forget them.  He just punished them for worshipping idols; but He promised to deliver them from the hands of Pagans who mistreat them.  He promised to gather them out of the east and the west, and from the north and south, into a new land.

This is a mystery I show you… the church!  It is the gathering of the children of God back to Israel into a new land called America.  Therefore the Jews called to work for Jesus are supposed to be gathering the lost Israelites back unto the Father.  The problem is the converted Messianic Jews don’t know it.  You are the kings and priests promised to reign with the Lord; but the Gentiles have robbed us of our heritage; and have made us believe we Jews must join them.

No! No! No!  Christianity is a Jewish religion and God was merciful enough to allow Gentile heathens to join us.  For salvation is of the Jews! Not the Gentiles!  Wake-up Jews!  The Thieves, who have taken God’s kingdom by force, have set the Jewish people against each other.  Don’t fall victim to the Gentiles.  Unite in love and judge not your brother.  For if you love your brother, you know God; but if you hate your brother whom you can see, how can you say you love God, whom you cannot see?  Liar!  You walk in the darkness even now, but you Jews are not the children of darkness, but the children of the light.

To be continued…

Every morning observant Jewish people recite the Modeh Ani … a prayer of thanksgiving.  For a listing of the actual Hebrew and its transliteration, go here.  The prayer itself instantly reminds me of the passage in Lamentations 3 in which we are reminded of God’s faithfulness to all generations. 

I offer thanks before you, living and eternal King, for You have mercifully restored my soul within me; Your faithfulness is great.

Oh that we, who are believers in Messiah Jesus, would offer the same prayer of thanksgiving to God.  We know the truth but yet struggle to offer a proper thanksgiving to our savior and redeemer.  Perhaps if we focused more on others (and their need of Jesus) and less upon ourselves, true thanksgiving would come more easily.  Just a thought on this Thanksgiving Day 2009.

Hodu la’Adonai!

For more information on the Hebrew meaning of thanks, check out Hebrew for Christians.

Check out my most recent sermon, A Strange Messiah.

“The Lord said, ‘I will hasten my work in its time’ (D&C 88:73). Surely anyone observing the recent growth of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is keenly aware of that hastening process. This should make us humbly grateful for the Lord’s omnipotent hand. Obstacles that seemed insurmountable have proven to be merely challenges for the faithful, for ‘with God nothing shall be impossible’ (Luke 1:37). “Inspiration has prepared the way from the beginning, when the Lord impressed the Prophet Joseph Smith to compose the twelfth article of faith: ‘We believe in being subject to kings, presidents, rulers, and magistrates, in obeying, honoring, and sustaining the law.’ This inspired statement was surely written for our day. The Prophet knew that the gospel was ultimately to be taken to all nations regardless of their governmental differences. He knew that the ordinances of salvation and exaltation could bless the lives of people regardless of their politics. And he knew that people who were taught correct principles and who were loyal to their civil leaders and observing of their local laws would be most able to enjoy the blessings of the gospel.”

Elder Russell M. Nelson

What has all this to do with Jesus, Christianity, or for that matter being a Jew?

The information disclosed in this writing has been offered to Jews only, for several reasons:

To help Gentiles, Gentile Christians, Jewish Christians, and all Jews, understand the truth about the Jewishness of original Christianity: to assist Jews who are haunted by their own confusion concerning their acceptance of the New Testament and their Messiah Jesus: to aid Christian Evangelists to understand that God has not called every Jew into the ranks of Christianity: to tell everyone about the church system used by Rome to deceive the nations into accepting a man as Christ, who is a false Christ: and to lighten the burden of misguided Jews, who have converted to become part of the Gentile form of Christianity: to reduce the pain they inflict upon their own families and friends.

In so much as, the converted Messianic Jews are the ones in error, and not their families for rejecting a false Jesus.  Which rejection, I might add, will not keep them from entering heaven after physical death, as the deluded converts have been brainwashed into believing.  In the immortal words of Jesus, they err because they do not know the Scriptures…

Yet I wouldn’t want either of you Jews, Christian convert or not, to go away thinking you are right and the other guy is wrong.  That is not the case I intended to present.  On the contrary, both are right, even though the converted Messianic Jew may be misguided and deceived.

My argument has been, Jews who reject Jesus will not go to hell for not accepting Jesus.  Since the Jesus presented to the world, as stated in 2 Corinthians 11:1-5, by all Christian Churches is a phony!  Therefore, you Jewish brothers and sisters who reject the present day nonsense about Jesus are right in doing so.

While on the other hand, the converted Jewish Christians, who do not believe or realize they’ve been deceived (even though the New Testament has more warnings against being deceived than any other subject).

They have actually been called by God to cross over into the Gentile world to do a special job for God: which job is to help the misguided Gentile Christians learn the truth about Jesus (the gospel).  These Messianic Jews were called by God to be the teachers of the Gentiles, but there is little hope of them allowing the Jews in their private club: as foretold by Jesus in the parable of the rented Vineyard in Matthew 21:33 to 41.

Christians who have fallen victim to lying Roman teachings and have also been deceived into believing lies about Jesus, will not be forgiven by God for having been deceived.  The Lord plainly warned Christians to study their Bibles not to be deceived.  There is a plan revealed in the Bible concerning a remnant of Jews who would be chosen by God for this very important work amongst the Gentile Christians; but the Gentiles are in control of the kingdom of God.  They took it by force and stole it from the Jews.

The Gentile Churches have learned to deceive people well.  They have learned how to put a spin on the scriptures to use them to prove their teachings.  They have learned how to keep the remnant of Jews from becoming effective at their anointed jobs of teaching the Jewish scriptures.

Thus rendering the remnant of Jews, who were chosen by God to believe in Jesus, ineffective at helping the deceived Gentiles.  They keep these chosen Jews from following in the footsteps of Paul the Apostle; their Jewish predecessor who was destined to teach the Roman Gentiles.

The Messianic Jews are totally ineffectual and have no effect on the Gentiles in serious trouble by reason of deceit!  Therefore, both sides of the Jewish question are right.  The Jews who know Jesus is the Messiah are right; and the Jewish Old Testament of the Bible is right; and the Jews who reject the false Gentile Jesus are right; and know the Jewish New Testament of the Bible is right!

Now you will say, but Jews who do not believe in Jesus will go to hell because Jesus said, No one comes unto the Father but by Me…. Wrong again, oh misguided one!  In John Chapter 6, verses 43 to 45 Jesus said, No one could come to Jesus unless the Father draw him to Jesus, and everyone shall be taught by God. Therefore, everyone that has heard, and has learned of the Father comes to Jesus.

Not knowing the Scriptures you always put the cart before the horse.  Besides isn’t the “Me” in verse 44, “No one comes unto the Father but by Me”, referring to Jesus; and isn’t Jesus’ name the Word of God?

Doesn’t the Bible teach the Word is able to save your soul and that the Word is able to renew your mind?  The Word is the Holy Spirit. The Word is what a person has to do in order to enter heaven.

Perhaps the guy named Jesus that you purport to follow was just spinning His wheels when He told the rich young man, do the commandments and you shall receive eternal life.  Perhaps eternal life is something different than being saved?

God promised the Jews they would never be consumed, yet they die like other people.  Therefore, the consumption Jesus referred to was genocide in this lifetime and eternal death in the next life, which is hell!

God has a very definite plan for the Jews who reject the phony Jesus, and do so by God’s grace just as you Messianic Jews believe Jesus is the Messiah by the same grace… or perhaps you have set yourself up as the Judge of Israel!  Beware!  I don’t have to teach you what Jesus said about Judging.  Jews were chosen to bait the world into being jealous of them.  They were chosen by God to suck anyone into hell that would dare touch them!

It doesn’t sound like a great profession for an entire nation of people, but neither was being the High Priest of Israel.  If God didn’t accept the offering presented in the Holy of Holies by the High Priest, he was struck dead!

To be continued…

Hello again, brothers and sisters!!!

Before we get into today’s discussion, I just want to briefly say “thank you” to those of you who have been regularly taking part in these discussions, as well as those of you who visit whenever you are able.  I would also like to thank all of our first-time visitors.  It is a blessing and a genuine pleasure to have you all here:-)

For today’s discussion, we will review the parables of the treasure and the goodly pearl.  While these two parables were a couple of the shorter parables that Jesus shared, they are certainly just as important as all of the other parables.  Jesus was speaking with His disciples when He shared these parables.  The parables are as follows:

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto treasure hid in a field;  the which when a man hath found, he hideth, and for joy thereof goeth and selleth all that he hath, and buyeth that field.  Again, the kingdom of heaven is like unto a merchant man, seeking goodly pearls:  Who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had, and bought it.” – Matthew 13:44-46 (KJV)

Both of these parables are making the same point, right?  Let’s break them down, shall we?

The man seeking treasure, and the merchant-man seeking goodly pearls, are played in real life by sinners seeking the truth, redemption, and salvation.  The treasure hiding in the field and the goodly pearl, represent the kingdom of God found through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who is also the Living Word of God.  So with that being the case, why would we have to sell all that we have in order to buy our way into the kingdom of God through Jesus Christ?  Doesn’t that run contrary to salvation being a gift given freely by grace through faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior?  It sure does.  however, the point of these parables is not that we are “buying” our way into the kingdom of God. 

The point is that once we have discovered the kingdom of heaven by accepting Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we should value nothing else as much as this “treasure/goodly pearl”.  Beloved, when we find the kingdom of heaven through Jesus Christ and His word, we should value the Lord, His word, and His kingdom above anything else in our lives.  As obedient and faithful servants, there should be no price we are unwilling to pay in order to serve Him completely.  If we live in complete submission to the Lord’s will, then there is no room for competing interests.  Just as with the Apostle Paul, all former things we held dear we must be willing to count as lost once we are saved.  Why?  Well, once we are saved, serving the Lord is to be the focal point of our lives, and our vision is to be focused like a laser on doing so.

Interestingly, in these two parables that Jesus Christ shared with us we can also Him as the man/merchant-man seeking the treasure/goodly pearls.  Think about it.  Jesus gave up all that He had and suffered death on the cross in order to pay our sin debt.  In so doing, beloved, we were saved and purchased by His blood.  The treasure being “hid” in the field refers to those who live in Christ being granted access to the kingdom of heaven, which is a place that someone who serves sin cannot find or gain access to.  Once we belong to Christ, He protects us from the enemy.  We are effectively “hidden” in His protection, as once we belong to Christ Jesus, we cannot be snatched away from Him.  As Jesus said:

“I told you, and ye believed not:  the works that I do in My Father’s name, they bear witness of Me.  But ye believe not, because ye are not of My sheep, as I said unto you.  My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow Me:  And I give unto them eternal life;  and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of My hand.  My Father, which gave them Me, is greater than all;  and no man is able to pluck them out of My Father’s hand.  I and My Father are one.” – John 10:25-30 (KJV)

Brothers and sisters, let us rejoice that the Lord considers us His “treasure/goodly pearl” and was willing to pay everything in order to save us!!!  Praise God!!!  Thank you, Jesus!!!  Furthermore, let’s praise the Lord God Almighty for His lovingkindness and longsuffering, and let’s show Him that He is the only real treasure that matters to us, as well!!!  Beloved, do you know what the word of God, the truth, salvation, entrance to the kingdom of heaven, light, love, peace, life, faith, wisdom, and understanding all have in common?  I’ll tell you what.  We find and receive all these things when we find Christ and turn our lives over to Him.  Jesus is the Truth.  Jesus is the Living Word of God.  Jesus is the Prince of Peace.  Jesus is the Author and Finisher/Perfector of our faith.  He is the Way to the Father and the kingdom of heaven.  Jesus Christ is the Life.  The Lord is the Light of the world.  You get the point, yes?

Beloved, besides the praise we offer to the Lord in the form of prayer, song, and worship, we need to commit ourselves to praise Him through our lives and actions.  That we belong to Christ Jesus should be obvious to all not just by the words we speak, but also by the things we do.  It should not appear to others that we live for money, or for the approval of man;  rather it should be clear to all that we live to serve our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Just as Jesus paid for us by giving up all that He had for our sakes, we ought to esteem our treasure, found in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, above any passing “treasure” that this world has to offer.  Remember, beloved, the treasure of this world lasts for a limited amount of time and diminishes.  The treasure of the Lord is forever.  Suffer any necessary hardships, persecutions, or trials in this world in order to serve the Lord obediently and faithfully.  By so doing, your treasure in heaven will be waiting for you, and increasing, and will be with you forever:-)

Beloved, the Lord will always provide for, and take care of, those entrusted to Him.  It is, however, up to each one of us to make the decision to seek the Lord and His kingdom.  If we are willing to walk through the thorns, rats, mice, and bugs, and other treacheries of the field in order to find Him, then we will find that our “treasure” is more than worth the jouney.  Remember, beloved, hidden treasure only has value to us once we find it.  In order to find it, we must seek it.  As Jesus said:

“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness;  and all these things shall be added unto you.” – Matthew 6:33 (KJV)

Precious one, we cannot claim hidden treasure that is never discovered, because we have no idea where it is.  Once we seek and find our treasure in Christ Jesus, however, we have the greatest treasure of all.  This is real treasure.  Everything other treasure pursued yields only fools gold.  So often we allow the cares of this world to distract us from searching for our hidden treasure.  Jesus was telling us not to get consumed/wrapped up in the concerns of this world.  He was telling us that we should put our whole focus on seeking the Lord and His will.  We can do so while not being overwhelmed with thoughts of what we will eat, where we will live, or what we will clothe ourselves with, because God will see to our needs just as He does with the birds of the air and the grass of the field.

Please pray for all those who have no idea of the hidden treasure available to them.  Let’s pray that they go searching for it, willing to brave the trials of the journey, in order to find the only treasure that really counts.  Furthermore, let’s pray that once they find that treasure, they see Him for who He really is and turn their lives over to Him as their Lord and Savior.  Jesus Christ is our treasure.

If you are ready to discover your hidden treasure, and claim your eternal inheritance from the Lord God Almighty, you can do so by accepting Him as your Lord and Savior today.  If you would like to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior today, and be saved, please pray the following prayer with me:

“Lord God Almighty, I know that I am a sinner and that I am lost.  I know that I need to be saved from sin, but I also know that I can’t save myself.  Lord Jesus, I know that only You can save me.  I know that you paid for my salvation with your own life and blood on the cross.  I know that when You rose from the grave on the third day, you conquered death and provided everlasting life to all who trust in You.  Right now, I lay down my life and let go of my pride, my vanity and every other sin that has kept me from You.  Lord Jesus, I now completely trust my life to You.  I open my heart to You, Lord.  Please come into my heart.  Please forgive me of all of my sins, and please accept me as Your child.  From this point on, I commit my life to You. Please guide me and provide me strength as I begin to live the rest of my life for You.  In Your precious and matchless name I pray.  Amen.”

Beloved, if you just prayed that prayer sincerely, then you just found your hidden treasure.  I would encourage you to find out what’s all in the treasure chest by exploring it through God’s word, through prayer with supplication and thanksgiving to the Lord, and by asking Him to reveal the fullness of the treasure to you.  The treasure you have, precious one, is priceless.  God set aside this treasure just for you through His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ.  Welcome to the family:-)  The angels in heaven are rejoicing this very moment at your decision to accept Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior.  Find out about this and much more by exploring God’s word that He had written just for you:-)  This relationship with Christ is the most precious and important relationship you will ever have.  Invest yourself in growing the relationship as much as possible.  Seek the Lord’s will in all things, and let your will be completely surrendered to Him.

Thank you for joining our discussion today.   I hope you are able to join us on Friday to pray over this week’s prayer requests. 

Remember, if you would like to order the new book “Strapping On the Whole Armor of God – Suiting Up For Spiritual Warfare), please visit my website at http://www.yourbrotherinchrist.com .  If you prefer to order by mail, you will also find the mailing address on that website.  This book is very valuable in helping people understand how to go about securely and effectively putting on the whole armor of God that the apostle Paul refers to in Chapter 6 of Ephesians.  We are praying that many people will receive this book and be blessed in their walk with the Lord by reading it.

Have a wonderful and blessed rest of the day!!!  Walk in faith, knowing that you are loved by the Creator of the heavens, earth, and all life, and knowing that the treasure that you now carry in your heart and soul is priceless:-)

Have a happy, safe, and blessed Thanksgiving Day tomorrow!  Give a special thanks to the Lord for all that He has done for you and your loved ones.  Without Him, we’d be in a very bad place:-)

May the Lord bless you, keep you, guide you, and make His face to shine upon you and your loved ones always.

Your brother in Christ,

Rev Jason Thurwanger

oh yeah!

Mark 8:34-38
Then he called the crowd to him along with his disciples and said: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me and for the gospel will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, yet forfeit his soul? Or what can a man give in exchange for his soul? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his Father’s glory with the holy angels.”

As the pressure from the Pharisees mounted on Jesus to make the world doubt him, he traveled from place to place sharing the gospel because he knew his time was short and there were many who need saving. He dint fight back with the Pharisees because he knew how futile it was to try and change the mind of the hard hearted who had no space for a messiah in their lives. Today’s passage is one that most of us have heard but don’t enjoy much because these are not words of encouragement to the world. Instead, they are words of caution and only a genuine follower of Christ would see the sweetness of what the Lord was saying.

I am the sort of person most people might think of as nice whereas in reality I had some serious issues with sin. I still have areas of difficulty and not to turn back to my old ways is very hard. If there has been change, it was only because the Lord has enabled it in me. However, the big issue is that sometimes, we feel like God would understand if in our humanness we faltered a tiny bit. Unfortunately, that is Satan tripping us into our old selves and we need to always stand guard. To be able to witness real change, we need to hand over the reins of our life to God. When we do so, we will look foolish and ‘uncool’ to the world and might face persecution for it but we will be giving God glory. Are you willing to be shameless to the world for God to transform you and gain victory over sin or do you want to gain the world and loose eternity with God?

In His Loving Service,
Vineet

Nut Cracker in the Woods

Welcome back, brothers and sisters!!! 

Today we are going to discuss the parable of the ten virgins and the bridegroom.  Jesus was talking to His disciples about be ready for the last day when He shared the following parable:

“Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom.  And five of them were wise, and five were foolish.  They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:  But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.  While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept.  And at midnight there was a cry made, ‘Behold, the bridegroom cometh;  go ye out to meet him.’  Then all those virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.”

“And the foolish said unto the wise, ‘Give us of your oil;  for our lamps are gone out.’  But the wise answered, saying, ‘Not so;  lest there be not enough for us and you:  but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.’  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came;  and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage:  and the door was shut.”

“Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us.’  But he answered and said, ‘Verily I say unto you, I know you not.” – Matthew 25:1-12 (KJV)

Brothers and sisters, the message of this parable is very sobering.  Let’s break this parable down and discuss the thrust of the message.

First of all, cast in the role of the bridegroom is the one and only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ.  The ten virgins represent us, believers and non-believers.

Okay, so now that we know the cast, what is the tie-in to the oil and the lamps?  That’s simple, actually.  Why do we need lamps?  Lamps help us to see where we are going, right?  We are blinded when we are surrounded by darkness.

The lamps, beloved, represent our spirits/souls.  Why do I say this?  Consider the following scripture:

“The spirit of man is the candle of the Lord, searching all the inward parts of the belly.” – Proverbs 20:27 (KJV)

So if the lamp represents our soul/spirit, what does the oil represent?  The oil represents the Holy Spirit, which is attained through Christ Jesus.  Remember, beloved, that though Jesus is not present with us physically on earth anymore, He lives here in our hearts through the Holy Spirit.  This is the same Holy Spirit that God the Father filled Jesus, His only begotten Son, with after He was baptized by John the Baptist.  Brothers and sisters, Jesus Christ is also known as the Light of the World.  Having His light in us, we can rejoice in knowing that our lamps will be lit and shining brightly at the moment that Jesus comes for us.

You see, beloved, the Holy Spirit is the oil that shines brightly enough that all can see our light, which is the presence of the Lord in our hearts.  How can people see that light?  Well, let’s look at the type of light that the Holy Spirit emanates, as described by the Apostle Paul:

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance:  against such there is no law.” - Galatians 5:22-23 (KJV)

You see, beloved, when we live in Christ, we are to be faithful and obedient servants of that which He blesses and graces us with.  Frankly, the manner in which we live should be a strong witness for Jesus Christ our Lord and Savior.  Remember, brothers and sisters, as His servants, our lives should be lived in such a manner as to reflect to others our service to our Lord and Savior.  That means we are to let the Lord’s light shine through us for all to see.  Jesus said the following about this:

“Ye are the light of the world.  A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid.  Neither do men light a candle, and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick;  and it giveth light unto all that are in the house.  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.” – Matthew 5:14-16 (KJV)

Beloved, the 5 virgins that heed the Lord’s word, and live by it, are those that He will find doing His work when He returns for His bride, which is the church.  The church is comprised of all those who have accepted salvation given by grace through faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.  Only those that have Christ in them will be called home to be with the Lord.  Those that do not have Christ in them have souls/spirits filled with darkness instead of light.  Since there will be no light found in such people, they will be passed over when the believers are called home.  Consider the parable of the ten virgins, and listen to what Jesus said would happen when He calls His servants home:

“Then shall two be in the field;  the one shall be taken, and the other left.  Two women shall be grinding at the mill;  the one shall be taken, and the other left.  Watch therefore;  for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.  But know this, that if the goodman of the house had known in what watch the thief would come, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken up.  Therefore be ye also ready:  for in such an hour as ye think not the Son of Man cometh.  Who then is a faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath made ruler over his household, to give them meat in due season?  Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.  Verily I say unto you, That he shall make him ruler over all his goods.  But and if that evil servant shall say in his heart, ‘My lord delayeth his coming’;  and shall begin to smite his fellowservants, and to eat and drink with the drunken;  The lord of that servant shall come in a day when he looketh not for him, and in an hour that he is not aware of, And shall cut him asunder, and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites:  there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” – Matthew 24:40-51 (KJV)

Brothers and sisters, no one knows when Jesus will return.  Jesus Himself said that only the Father knows the appointed hour.  The point is that we are supposed to constantly live our lives doing the work of our Lord and Savior so that in that “twinkling of an eye” when Jesus does return, we are found as faithful and obedient servants, diligently doing His work and will.

Unfortunately, beloved, there are many that live without Christ in their hearts.  They do not have the oil of the Holy Spirit burning brightly within them and emanating His light in their lives.  This, brothers and sisters, is all the more reason for us to constantly have our lamps lit with the oil of the Holy Spirit.  By sharing, embracing, and living the Lord’s word and love, we will be more effective in shining His light through the darkness in order to reach those that are presently lost.  Just as we were once lost before being found, we are incredibly blessed with the opportunity to help gather many of our Shepherd’s lost “sheep” by lighting up the path that will lead them home to Him.  This is our mission, beloved, and the time is now to carry it out.

No one should take for granted that the Lord will not come back for “x” amount more time.  We simply do not know the Lord’s return date and time, as only the Father knows.  Jesus could return in 5,000 years, 5 months, 5 weeks, 5 days, or in the next 5 seconds.  Regardless of how long it is until Jesus returns, we need to commit ourselves to doing His work every single day of our lives.  When He returns for us, let’s bless and glorify Him by meeting Him with as many well-oiled lamps as possible!!!

I would like to ask each and every person taking part in today’s discussion a few questions.  If the Lord Jesus Christ were to return in the next few seconds, would you be ready?  Would the Lord find your lamp lit brightly by the oil of the Holy Spirit?  Just as importantly, are you confident and assured that all of your family, friends, and loved ones would be found ready if Jesus were to return in the next few seconds?  Are you confident that hte majority of people in this world are ready to meet the Lord?

Let’s be honest, beloved.  There are a great many people that are not yet ready to meet Jesus Christ.  If Jesus were calling His faithful servants home today, an incredibly large number of people would be among those left behind.  Evidence of this can be found all throughout the world today.  Just turn on the 6 o’clock news, or go for a drive through the city, and you will see that much of humanity is spiritually lost and adrift at sea, without boat or life jacket.  This, brothers and sisters, is the urgency of our mission.  Just as with the 5 foolish virgins, those who are not ready to meet the Lord when He calls His faithful home will find out the harsh reality that the time for making the decision to commit their lives to Him has passed.

Beloved, ask the Lord for the endurance, strength, perseverance, and courage to work tirelessly to share His love and His word with as many people as possible.  The Lord will give you the words and the guidance you need through the Holy Spirit.  The time is now, beloved, for us to increase our staffing levels of faithful and obedient servants to take part in the Lord’s harvest.  Let’s get to work!!!

If you have not yet accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, but you would like to, please pray the following prayer:

“Lord God Almighty, I know that I am a sinner and that I am lost.  I know that I need to be saved from sin, but I also know that I can’t save myself.  Lord Jesus, I know that only You can save me.  I know that you paid for my salvation with your own life and blood on the cross.  I know that when You rose from the grave on the third day, you provided everlasting life to all who trust in You.  Right now, I lay down my life and let go of my pride, my vanity and every other sin that has kept me from You.  Lord Jesus, I now completely trust my life to You.  I open my heart to You, Lord.  Please come into my heart.  Please forgive me of all of my sins, and please accept me as Your child.  From this point on, I commit my life to You.  Please guide me and provide me strength as I begin to live the rest of my life for You.  In Your precious and matchless name I pray.  Amen.”

Beloved, if you just prayed that prayer then you can rejoice in knowing that you now have the presence of the Lord in your heart.  While you will still face trials and tribulation in this world, you will never again face it alone.  Nurture your new relationship with the Lord and grow that relationship by getting to know Him better.  You can do this by studying His word (the bible), while also making talking to Him continually through prayer made with thanksgiving and supplication.  All you have to do to find out what the Lord had in mind for your life when He made you is to ask Him to shape your life in manner in which serves His will and then embrace the changes that He makes in you and your life.  Welcome to the family, beloved!!!  You are precious in your Heavenly Father’s eyes, and the angels in heaven are rejoicing in your decision to accept Christ Jesus as your Lord and Savior:-)  We are happy to have you!!!

Thank you for joining us for today’s discussion.  I hope you will be able to join us for tomorrow’s next discussion.  Now, go enjoy this day that the Lord has made, and make the most of it.  Be glad, and rejoice in it!!!  Share the Lord, His love, and His word with as many people as possible, doing so just as freely as the Father shared His only begotten Son with us:-)

May the Lord bless you, keep you, guide you, and make His face to shine upon you and your loved ones always.

Your brother in Christ,

Rev Jason Thurwanger

He aquí nuestra rica y variada oferta de ‘Mesías’ de Haendel.
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Welcome back, brothers and sisters!!!

Today we are going to discuss the parable of the wedding banquet.  This is a parable that Jesus spoke to the chief priests and Pharisees of the temple.  The parable is as follows:

“The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, whcih made a marriage for his son, And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding:  and they would not come.  Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, ‘Tell them which are bidden, ‘Behold, I have prepared my dinner:  my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready:  come unto the marriage.”  But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise:  And the remnant took his servants, and intreated them spitefully, and slew them.”

“But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth:  and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city.  Then saith he to his servants, ‘The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy.  Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage.’  So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good:  and the wedding was furnished with guests.”

“And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there was a man which had not on a wedding garment:  And he saith unto him, ‘Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment?’  And he was speechless.  Then said the king to the servants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness;  there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’  For many are called, but few are chosen.” – Mattew 22:2-14 (KJV)

Brothers and sisters, let’s break down the parable, staring with the cast.

The king of the parable represents God the Father.  The son that the king has arranged a marriage for is Jesus Christ.  The bride to be is the church of Christ, which is all who live in the Lord.  The servants that were sent out to invite the guests represent the prophets.  The first group of guests that was repeatedly invited was the Israelites, God’s chosen people.  Remember, that though many prophets were respected and revered for a time, they usually ended up being persecuted/killed by the very people they were trying to reach with God’s message.

The second group of guests are the Gentiles, or the non-Jews.  When the Jewish people repeatedly rejected the Father, His word, and ultimately Jesus Christ and the Gospel He shared, the Gentiles were blessed with the opportunity to receive the Gospel and to receive Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior while also receiving the gift of salvation that is found only in the only begotten Son of God.

Why was the one guest in the parable cast into outer darkness for not having on a wedding garment?  The answer is simple.  Do you know what the wedding garment is that the guests were to be clothed with?  Consider the following scripture:

“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God;  for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh himself with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth herself with her jewels.” – Isaiah 61:10 (KJV)

You see, beloved, in order to attend the marriage of the Lamb of God, we must be attired appropriately.  We know that the only person we can get the appropriate attire from is Jesus Christ.  Why?  Through Jesus our sins are washed away, our hearts are purified, and we are clothed with the robe of righteousness.  The person in the parable without the robe of righteousness was a person that had not given their life to Jesus Christ, and was subsequently not wearing the necessary robe of righteousness.  Therefore, the inappropriately attired guest offended the king (God the Father). 

Brothers and sisters, there are people in this world who call themselves Christians, yet Christ is not found anywhere in them.  Such people often assume that going to church, periodically praying, and sometimes reading the bible and quoting chapter and verse is sufficient.  These are usually people that rejoice in sin Monday through Saturday, while attempting to live a Christian life on Sunday.  These are referred to as Sunday Christians, or Convenient Christians, and they do not have a place at the Lord’s table.  Why?  Beloved, Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior 365 days/year and 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.  Likewise, we are to be His servants at all times as well, living obediently and faithfully in serving Him.  Unfortunately, some are not sincere in their service to the Lord.  Jesus spoke of such people when He said the following about the day of judgment:

“Not everyone that saith unto Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;  but he that doeth the will of My Father which is in heaven.  Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name?  and in thy name have cast out devils?  and in thy name done many wonderful works?’  And then I will profess unto them, ‘I never knew you:  depart from Me, ye that work iniquity.” – Matthew 7:21-23 (KJV)

You see, beloved, while we can fool our fellow man into believing that we are someone we are not, God always knows who we are.  God knows our hearts and knows all there is to possibly know about us.  A few acts, or a few words, do not make a faithful and obedient servant in Christ.  A faithful and obedient servant of the Lord lives in service to Him at all times, while also having the Lord in his/her heart at all times.  We love His word, regularly study it, and He writes it into our hearts.  We take every opportunity to share the Lord’s love and word with anyone we can reach.  We are never ashamed to confess to others that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior, and Jesus is not ashamed of presenting us to the Father and speaking on our behalf.  Beloved, let’s live Christ in our lives all day, every single day.  Let’s study His word regularly as diligent students, and let’s do His work always as faithful and obedient servants are to do.  The Lord has already given us everything by blessing us with the gift of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior.  Let’s show Him how much we appreciate His sacrifice, His love, and His forgiveness by doing His work and will unceasingly and with a glad heart.

Beloved, if you have not yet received Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, but you would sincerely like to, then please pray the following prayer:

“Lord God Almighty, I know that I am a sinner and that I am lost.  I know that I need to be saved from sin, but I also know that I can’t save myself.  Lord Jesus, I know that only You can save me.  I know that you paid for my salvation with your own life and blood on the cross.  I know that when You rose from the grave on the third day, you provided everlasting life to all who trust in You.  Right now, I lay down my life and let go of my pride, my vanity and every other sin that has kept me from You.  Lord Jesus, I now completely trust my life to You.  I open my heart to You, Lord.  Please come into my heart.  Please forgive me of all of my sins, and please accept me as Your child.  From this point on, I commit my life to You.  Please guide me and provide me strength as I begin to live the rest of my life for You.  In Your precious and matchless name I pray. Amen.”

I you just prayed that prayer, honestly seeking the Lord, then you are now saved.  The robe of righteousness is now available unto you, and though you will still face adversity in this world, you now have the Lord with you to face and overcome anything that comes your way.  Nurture your relationship with the Lord by talking to Him often through prayer with thanks and supplication, while also studying His word.  Ask the Lord to guide your every path, and follow the path that He sets before you.  You no longer serve the sins and lusts of this world.  Your chains that tied you to the things of this world have now been broken.  Serve the Lord with all your heart, and always seek His will in all things.  Welcome to the family:-)  Know that the angels in heaven are rejoicing at your decision to give your life to the Lord!!!

I want to thank you all for joining in on today’s discussion.  I hope you will be able to join us for tomorrow’s next message.

I hope you have a wonderful and blessed rest of the day.  Remember, you are loved by the very Creator of earth, the heavens, and all life with a love that is perfect, complete, and powerful beyond our present ability to fully comprehend.  Precious one, He made you in your mother’s womb, and you are very special to Him:-)

May the Lord bless you, keep you, guide you, and make His face to shine upon you and your loved ones always.

Your brother in Christ,

Rev Jason Thurwanger

We’ve covered the prophecies concerning the coming Messiah healing the blind and deaf in earlier weeks.  This week we will look at the prophecies that the Messiah would also heal the mute.  If you have been following this series, by now the following prophecy from the book of Isaiah, written hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus, should be familiar:

Say to those who have an anxious heart, “Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.” Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. For waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert;  [Isaiah 35:4-6 ESV]

We’re going slightly out of order as we should probably handle the healing of the lame first, but we’ll take care of that in a later installment.  The point is that God let his people know hundreds of years before the birth of Jesus that the Messiah would accomplish the following miracles:

• Heal the blind
• Heal the deaf
• Heal the lame
• Heal the mute

We turn once again to the book of Matthew for examples of Jesus healing the mute:

As they were going away, behold, a demon-oppressed man who was mute was brought to him. And when the demon had been cast out, the mute man spoke. And the crowds marveled, saying, “Never was anything like this seen in Israel.”  [Matthew 9:32-33 ESV]

Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?”  [Matthew 12:22-23 ESV]

Once again, we see the miracles of Jesus forecast hundreds of years before his birth and recorded by a prophet of God.

Return to the Monday Morning Prophecy index page.

Image courtesy of Abby Reed

History According to Wikipedia:

In Canada, Thanksgiving is celebrated on the second Monday in October. It is the only other country outside of the United States that officially observes the day as a holiday.

Thanksgiving involves a group of people commonly known as the Pilgrims.

They were a dissenting religious group considered to be outside of mainstream “Christianity”.  The Pilgrims felt that the only way freely to practice their religion was to physically separate themselves from the Church of England that had persecuted them*. First to flee persecution, these “Separatists,” moved to the English Midlands. Then they went to Amsterdam in 1607. In 1609, they moved to the more religiously tolerant Netherlands. But they decided that this would not do.  Finally, they began their voyage to America in 1620. It took months to cross the sea and they lost many during that voyage as well as after coming to America.. In spite of all their sufferings and the death of half of their company, in October 1621, the Pilgrims celebrated their first harvest.  In 1863, US President Lincoln made a proclamation that ultimately led to Thanksgiving becoming a US holiday.

*Was this a fulfillment of Biblical prophecy?

Deu 29:24 “And all nations shall say, ‘Why has יהוה  done so to this land? What does the heat of this great displeasure mean?’
Deu 29:25 “And it shall be said, ‘Because they have forsaken the covenant of יהוה  Elohim of their fathers, which He made with them when He brought them out of the land of Mitsrayim.
Deu 29:26 ‘And they went and served other mighty ones and bowed themselves to them, mighty ones that they did not know and that He had not given to them,
Deu 29:27 therefore the displeasure of יהוה  burned against this land, to bring on it every curse that is written in this book.
Deu 29:28 ‘And יהוה  uprooted them from their land in displeasure, and in wrath, and in great rage, and cast them into another land**, as it is today.’
The Puritans and most Americans of the 1600’s believed the above Scripture applied to them.  They believed they were Israelites who were being led to a new promised land by the hand of Providence.

**Eretz acharet…America was called the ‘New World’ which could be translated roughly from this Hebrew phrase.
2Sa 7:10 “And I shall appoint a place for My people Yisra’ĕl, and shall plant them, and they shall dwell in a place of their own and no longer be afraid, neither shall the children of wickedness oppress them again, as at the first,
This prophecy was told to David while Yisrael was dwelling safely in the Land.  Ultimately, this is a prophecy of the Kingdom of Messiah but a partial fulfillment may be America.

2 Esdras 13:34 And an innumerable multitude shall be gathered together, as thou sawest them, willing to come, and to overcome him by fighting.
35 But he {Messiah} shall stand upon the top of the mount Sion.
36 And Sion shall come, and shall be shewed to all men, being prepared and builded, like as thou sawest the hill graven without hands.
37 And this my Son shall rebuke the wicked inventions of those nations, which for their wicked life are fallen into the tempest;
38 And shall lay before them their evil thoughts, and the torments wherewith they shall begin to be tormented, which are like unto a flame: and he shall destroy them without labour by the law which is like unto me.
39 And whereas thou sawest that he gathered another peaceable multitude unto him;
40 Those are the ten tribes, which were carried away prisoners out of their own land in the time of Osea the king, whom Salmanasar the king of Assyria led away captive, and he carried them over the waters, and so came they into another land.
41 But they took this counsel among themselves, that they would leave the multitude of the heathen, and go forth into a further country, where never mankind dwelt,
42 That they might there keep their statutes, which they never kept in their own land.
Here we see an amazing prophecy of the 10 tribes, which are represented by the Christians that left Europe to travel to the New World.  There is much historical evidence that the 10 tribes migrated to Europe and later accepted the Gospel.  It is these ‘lost tribes’ that purposed to go to a land where mankind had not known to keep the Torah that they didn’t keep while in the Land of Yisrael.

The Vine in the wilderness

Isa 5:1  Now will I sing to my wellbeloved a song of my beloved touching his vineyard. My wellbeloved hath a vineyard in a very fruitful hill:
Isa 5:2  And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, and built a tower in the midst of it, and also made a winepress therein: and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes.
Isa 5:3  And now, O inhabitants of Jerusalem, and men of Judah, judge, I pray you, betwixt me and my vineyard.
Isa 5:4  What could have been done more to my vineyard, that I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes?
Isa 5:5  And now go to; I will tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will take away the hedge thereof, and it shall be eaten up; and break down the wall thereof, and it shall be trodden down:
Isa 5:6  And I will lay it waste: it shall not be pruned, nor digged; but there shall come up briers and thorns: I will also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.
Isa 5:7  For the vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the men of Judah his pleasant plant: and he looked for judgment, but behold oppression; for righteousness, but behold a cry.

Mat 21:33  Hear another parable: There was a certain man, a house master, who planted a vineyard and placed a hedge around it; and he dug a winepress in it, and built a tower. And he rented it to vinedressers and left the country. Isa. 5:1, 2
Mat 21:34  And when the season of the fruits came, he sent his slaves to the vinedressers to receive his fruits.
Mat 21:35  And the vinedressers, taking his slaves, they beat this one, and they killed one, and they stoned another.
Mat 21:36  Again he sent other slaves, more than the first. And they did the same to them.
Mat 21:37  And at last he sent his son to them, saying, They will respect my son.
Mat 21:38  But seeing the son, the vinedressers said among themselves, This is the heir. Come, let us kill him and possess his inheritance.
Mat 21:39  And taking him, they threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.
Mat 21:40  Therefore, when the lord of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those vinedressers?
Mat 21:41  They said to Him, Bad men! He will miserably destroy them, and he will rent out the vineyard to other vinedressers who will give to him the fruits in their seasons.
Mat 21:42  Jesus said to them, Did you never read in the Scriptures, “A Stone which the builders rejected, this One became the Head of the Corner? This was from the Lord, and it is a wonder in our eyes?” Psalm 118:22, 23
Mat 21:43  Because of this I say to you, The kingdom of God will be taken from you, and it will be given to a nation producing the fruits of it.*

*This is the role that America was/is to fulfill.  No single nation has spread the Gospel more than the USA/America.  The problem is that when believers fled from Europe to escape religious persecution, there was also those from the side of darkness that came along with them to escape that same religious intolerance.  There has always been this power struggle in this country between those who wish to worship YHWH according to the dictates of their hearts versus those who hate Him and wish to bring about a new world of antichrist. click here

The date and location of the first Thanksgiving celebration is a topic of modest contention. Though the earliest attested Thanksgiving celebration was on September 8, 1565 in what is now Saint Augustine, Florida

The traditional “first Thanksgiving” is venerated as having occurred at the site of Plymouth Plantation, in 1621. The Plymouth celebration occurred early in the history in one of the original thirteen colonies that became the United States, and this celebration became an important part of the American myth by the 1800s.

Thanksgiving or Thanksgiving Day, presently celebrated on the fourth Thursday in November, has been an annual tradition in the United States since 1863. It did not become a federal holiday until 1941. Thanksgiving was historically a religious observation to give thanks to God,[1] and is still celebrated as such by many families, but it is now also considered a secular holiday as well.
“Thanksgiving Day”. Encyclopædia Britannica. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/590003/Thanksgiving-Day. Retrieved 2009-11-03.

The First Thanksgiving was celebrated to give thanks to God and the Native Americans for helping the pilgrims survive the brutal winter. Although half of the pilgrims who arrived on the Mayflower had already died, many more would have had it not been for the native Americans teaching the pilgrims to harvest foods. The first Thanksgiving feast lasted three whole days providing enough food for 53 pilgrims and 90 Indians. The traditional Thanksgiving menu often features turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie. Americans may eat these foods on modern day Thanksgiving, but the first feast did not consist of these items. On the first feast turkey was any type of fowl that the pilgrims hunted. Pumpkin pie wasn’t on the menu because there were no ovens for baking, but they did have boiled pumpkin. Cranberries weren’t introduced at this time. Due to the diminishing supply of flour there was no bread of any kind. The foods included in the first feast included duck, geese, venison, fish, lobster, clams, swan, berries, dried fruit, pumpkin, squash, and many more vegetables.

Squanto, a Patuxet Native American who resided with the Wampanoag tribe, taught the Pilgrims how to catch eel and grow corn and served as an interpreter for them (Squanto had learned English as a slave in Europe and travels in England). The Pilgrims set apart a day to celebrate at Plymouth immediately after their first harvest, in 1621. At the time, this was not regarded as a Thanksgiving observance; harvest festivals existed in English and Wampanoag tradition alike. Several colonists gave personal accounts of the 1621 feast in Plymouth, Massachusetts. The Pilgrims, most of whom were Separatists, are not to be confused with Puritans who established their own Massachusetts Bay Colony nearby (current day Boston) in 1628 and had very different religious beliefs*.

There were two different camps of believers that came out of the Protestant reformation.  The Pilgrims were considered ‘Separatists’ who did not seek to reform the church but to separate from it.  The Puritans sought to ‘purify’ church and state.

The Pilgrims did not hold a true Thanksgiving until 1623, after a switch from communal farming to privatized farming finally resulted in a larger harvest.[9] Irregular Thanksgivings continued after favorable events and days of fasting after unfavorable ones. In the Plymouth tradition, a thanksgiving day was a church observance, rather than a feast day.

The Massachusetts Bay Colony (consisting mainly of Puritan Christians) celebrated Thanksgiving for the first time in 1630, and frequently thereafter until about 1680, when it became an annual festival in that colony; and Connecticut as early as 1639 and annually after 1647, except in 1675. The Dutch in New Netherland appointed a day for giving thanks in 1644 and occasionally thereafter.

Charlestown, Massachusetts held the first recorded Thanksgiving observance June 29, 1671 by proclamation of the town’s governing council.

During the 18th century individual colonies commonly observed days of thanksgiving throughout each year. We might not recognize a traditional Thanksgiving Day from that period, as it was not a day marked by plentiful food and drink as is today’s custom, but rather a day set aside for prayer and fasting.

Later in the 1700s individual colonies would periodically designate a day of thanksgiving in honor of a military victory, an adoption of a state constitution or an exceptionally bountiful crop. Such a Thanksgiving Day celebration was held in December 1777 by the colonies nationwide, commemorating the surrender of British General Burgoyne at Saratoga.

In the middle of the American Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln, prompted by a series of editorials written by Sarah Josepha Hale,[3] proclaimed a national Thanksgiving Day, to be celebrated on the final Thursday in November 1863:

The year that is drawing towards its close, has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added, which are of so extraordinary a nature, that they cannot fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever watchful providence of Almighty God. In the midst of a civil war of unequalled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign States to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere except in the theatre of military conflict; while that theatre has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union. Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defence, have not arrested the plough, the shuttle, or the ship; the axe had enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well of iron and coal as of the precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased, notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege and the battle-field; and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years, with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently and gratefully acknowledged as with one heart and voice by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to his tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquility and Union.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the city of Washington, this third day of October, in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty-three, and of the independence of the United States the eighty-eighth.”

Proclamation of President Abraham Lincoln, October 3, 1863.

Interestingly, Thanksgiving was proclaimed as a national holiday after the north and south came back together as one nation.  The Scriptures speak of the northern tribes and the southern tribes coming back together as a time of Thanksgiving as well.

Jer 30:18  So says YHWH, Behold I will turn the captivity of Jacob’s tents and will have mercy on his dwelling places. And the city shall be built on her ruin heap; and the fortress shall remain on its own ordinance.
Jer 30:19  And out of them shall come thanksgiving and the voice of those who are merry. And I will multiply them, and they shall not be few. I also will honor them, and they shall not be small.

Isa 51:3  For YHWH comforts Zion. He comforts all her desolations, and He makes her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of YHWH; joy and gladness shall be found in it, thanksgiving and the voice of singing praise

Hodu – Turkey

In excavations near Salem, Massachuseets an old Hebrew manuscript was found that sheds light on why turkey is eaten on Thanksgiving.
b’chag hahodaya
On holiday/feast Thanksgiving

Hodu sheain atem
Give thanks that not you are

tarngol hahodu asher lfaneikhem
the fowl indian/turkey that is before you

This manuscript was called Haggada Shel Hodaya…similar to Haggada shel Pesach.  At Passover it is said:

leshana ha’ba’a b’yerushalayim

Next year in Jerusalem

Haggada Shel Hodaya instructs Thanksgiving day meal be concluded with:

Hodu=give thanks

India = Hodu
The other name for turkey in those days was Indian chicken because Columbus thought he was in India when he saw turkeys for the first time.

The Hebrew word for Turkey is

Benjamin Franklin proposed that turkey be the national bird of the USA arguing that the turkey was more honest, honorable, diligent and smarter than the bald eagle.

Puritans, Yisrael & The Torah

Marvin Wilson’s book,  Our Father Abraham
explains (pp. 127-128):

During the period of the Protestant Reformation (16th century), some signs of the re-Judaization of the Christian faith began to surface, as certain Hebrew categories were rediscovered. The Reformers put great stress on sola scriptura (Scripture as the sole and final authority of the Christian). The consequent de-emphasis on tradition brought with it a return to the biblical roots. Accordingly, during the two centuries following the Reformation, several groups recognized the importance of once again emphasizing the Hebraic heritage of the Church. Among these people were the Puritans who founded Pilgrim America, and the leaders who pioneered American education. We shall comment briefly on the first of these groups before concentrating on the second.

The Puritans came to America deeply rooted in the Hebraic tradition. Most bore Hebrew names. The Pilgrim fathers considered themselves as the children of Israel fleeing “Egypt” (England), crossing the “Red Sea” (the Atlantic Ocean), and emerging from this “Exodus” to their own “promised land” (New England). The Pilgrims thought of themselves as “all the children of Abraham” and, thus, under the covenant of Abraham. (Feingold p. 46.)

The President of Yale College used these words before the Governor and General Assembly of the state of Connecticut in 1783: “Their influence on American society was not soon forgotten: more than a century and a half after the first Puritan settlers reached New England, the American people were referred to in a State Assembly as ‘God’s American Israel.’” (Feldman p. 5)

The seeds of religious liberty for the American Church did not come from New England leaders such as Roger Williams and Anne Hutchinson-as noble as they and others were. Rather, it came from the Hebrews themselves, whose sacred writings inspired the Puritans. Accordingly, many of the Puritans in seventeenth-century England were learned Hebraists. William Bradford (1590-1657), prominent early American and Governor of Plymouth Colony for more than three decades, maintained an intense interest in Hebrew. Bradford stated that he studied Hebrew so that when he died he might be able to speak in the “most ancient language, the Holy Tongue in which God and, the angels, spake.” Cotton Mather (1663-1728), a well-known Puritan minister and scholar from Massachusetts, had a similar deep respect for the Hebrew language. Concerning its importance, Mather once observed, “I promise that those who
spend as much time morning and evening in Hebrew studies as they do in smoking tobacco, would quickly make excellent progress in the language.”click here (Rosovsky)

So popular was the Hebrew Language in the late 16th and early 17th centuries that several students at Yale delivered their commencement orations in Hebrew. Harvard, Yale, Columbia, Brown, Princeton, Johns Hopkins, and the University of Pennsylvania taught courses in Hebrew—all the more remarkable because no university in England at the time offered it.

Many of the population, including a significant number of the Founding Fathers of America, were products of these American universities—for example, Thomas Jefferson attended William and Mary, James Madison Princeton, Alexander Hamilton King’s College (i.e. Columbia). Thus, we can be sure that a majority of these political leaders were not only well acquainted with the contents of both the New and Old Testaments but also had some working knowledge of Hebrew. Notes Abraham Katsh in The Biblical Heritage of American Democracy (p. 70):

At the time of the American Revolution, the interest in the knowledge of Hebrew was so widespread as to allow the circulation of the story that “certain members of Congress proposed that the use of English be formally prohibited in the United States, and Hebrew substituted for it.”

Many of the earliest “pilgrims” who settled the “New England” of America in early 17th century were Puritan refugees escaping religious persecutions in Europe.

Over the next century, America continued to be not only the land of opportunity for many people seeking a better life but also the land of religious tolerance. By the middle 1700’s, the east coast of America was settled by a virtual “Who’s Who” of Christian splinter sects from all over Europe. Among them were:

* the Puritans, whom we already know so well
* the Quakers, an extremist Puritan sect who did not believe in ministers and for whom a Society of Friends meeting together was good enough to bring down the Holy Spirit
* Calvinists, who early on had challenged the Catholic belief that the bread and wine became the body and blood of Jesus in the celebration of the mass
* the Huguenots, or French Calvinists
* the Moravians, followers of John Hus, the protestant martyr from Bohemia
* the Mennonites, a Swiss sect of Anabaptists who rejected infant baptism
* the Amish, the most stringent of the Mennonites

These were just some of the numerous groups who arrived in America in search of religious freedom.

The majority of the earliest settlers were, of course, Puritans. Beginning with the Mayflower, over the next twenty years, 16,000 Puritans migrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and many more settled in Connecticut and Rhode Island. Like their cousins back in England, these American Puritans strongly identified with both the historical traditions and customs of the ancient Hebrews of the Old Testament. They viewed their emigration from England as a virtual re-enactment of the Jewish exodus from Egypt. To them, England was Egypt, the king was Pharaoh, the Atlantic Ocean was the Red Sea, America was the Land of Israel, and the Indians were the ancient Canaanites. They were the new Israelites, entering into a new covenant with God in a new Promised Land. Thanksgiving—first celebrated in 1621, a year after the Mayflower landed—was initially conceived as day parallel to the Jewish Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur; it was to be a day of fasting, introspection and prayer.

After that first harvest was completed by the Plymouth colonists, Gov. William Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiving and prayer, shared by all the colonists and neighboring Indians. In 1623 a day of fasting and prayer during a period of drought was changed to one of thanksgiving because the rain came during the prayers. Gradually the custom prevailed in New England of annually celebrating thanksgiving after the harvest. During the American Revolution a yearly day of national thanksgiving was suggested by the Continental Congress. In 1817 New York State adopted Thanksgiving Day as an annual custom, and by the middle of the 19th century many other states had done the same. In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln appointed a day of thanksgiving as the last Thursday in November, which he may have correlated it with the November 21, 1621, anchoring of the Mayflower at Cape Cod.

Other believe that the Pilgrims were celebrating Sukkot

http://www.jewfaq.org/holiday5.htm

Many Americans, upon seeing a decorated sukkah for the first time, remark on how much the sukkah (and the holiday generally) reminds them of Thanksgiving. This may not be entirely coincidental: I was taught that our American pilgrims, who originated the Thanksgiving holiday, borrowed the idea from Sukkot. The pilgrims were deeply religious people. When they were trying to find a way to express their thanks for their survival and for the harvest, they looked to the Bible for an appropriate way of celebrating and found Sukkot. This is not the standard story taught in public schools today (that a Thanksgiving holiday is an English custom that the Pilgrims brought over), but the Sukkot explanation of Thanksgiving fits better with the meticulous research of Mayflower historian Caleb Johnson, who believes that the original Thanksgiving was a harvest festival (as is Sukkot), that it was observed in October (as Sukkot usually is), and that Pilgrims would not have celebrated a holiday that was not in the Bible (but Sukkot is in the Bible). Although Mr. Johnson claims that the first Thanksgiving was “not a religious holiday or observance,” he apparently means this in a Christian sense, because he goes on to say that the first Thanksgiving was instead “a harvest festival that included feasts, sporting events, and other activities,” concepts very much in keeping with the Jewish religious observance of Sukkot.

Gabriel Sivan, in The Bible and Civilization, (p. 236) observes:

“No Christian community in history identified more with the People of the Book than did the early settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony, who believed their own lives to be a literal reenactment of the Biblical drama of the Hebrew nation. They themselves were the children of Israel; America was their Promised Land; the Atlantic Ocean their Red Sea; the Kings of England were the Egyptian pharaohs; the American Indians the Canaanites; the pact of the Plymouth Rock was God’s holy Covenant; and the ordinances by which they lived were the Divine Law. Like the Huguenots and other Protestant victims of Old World oppression, these émigré Puritans dramatized their own situation as the righteous remnant of the Church corrupted by the “Babylonian woe,” and saw themselves as instruments of Divine Providence, a people chosen to build their new commonwealth on the Covenant entered into at Mount Sinai.”

The earliest legislation of the colonies of New England was all determined by Scripture. At the first assembly of New Haven in 1639, John Davenport clearly stated the primacy of the Bible as the legal and moral foundation of the colony:

Scriptures do hold forth a perfect rule for the direction and government of all men in all duties which they are to perform to God and men as well as in the government of families and commonwealth as in matters of the Church … the Word of God shall be the only rule to be attended unto in organizing the affairs of government in this plantation. (See Abraham I Katsch, The Biblical Heritage of American Democracy, p. 97)

Subsequently, the New Haven legislators adopted a legal code—the Code of 1655—which contained some 79 statutes, half of which contained Biblical references, virtually all from the Hebrew Bible. The Plymouth Colony had a similar law code as did the Massachusetts assembly, which, in 1641—after an exhortation by Reverend John Cotton who presented the legislators with a copy of Moses, His Judicials—adopted the so-called “Capitall Lawes of New England” based almost entirely on Mosaic law.

Ezra Stiles

The following excerpts from Pastor Ezra Stiles’ sermon capture the vision which many of America’s great churchmen had for this planting of God’s vine in the wilderness:

… I have assumed the text only as introductory to a discourse upon the political welfare of God’s American Israel, and as allusively prophetic of the future prosperity and splendor of the United States.
Pastor Ezra Stiles, D.D., “The United States Elevated to Glory and Honor,” election sermon on May 8, 1783, quoted in John Wingate Thornton in The Pulpit of the American Revolution: Political Sermons of the Period of 1776, 1860 ed., reprinted (Boston, MA: Da Capo Press, 1970) p. 403.

Already does the new constellation of the United States begin to realize this glory. It has already risen to an acknowledged sovereignty among the republics and kingdoms of the world. And we have reason to hope, and, I believe, to expect, that God has still greater blessings in store for this vine which his own right hand hath planted, to make us high among the nations in praise, and in name, and in honor. The reasons are very numerous, weighty, and conclusive.  Stiles, pp. 438-439

Our degree of population is such as to give us reason to expect that this will become a great people…. This will be a great, a very great nation…. Should this prove a future fact, how applicable would be the text, when the Lord shall have made his American Israel high above all nations which he has made, in numbers, and in praise, and in name, and in honor! Stiles, Stiles pp. 439-440

Any possible ambiguity in Pastor Stiles’ sermon is cleared in the following declaration by Pastor W. B. Record:
LOOKING WESTWARD…

Standing on the western shores of Europe 500 years ago, you could not see nor visualize a great continent that lay to the west; only what seemed to be an endless stretch of the Atlantic Ocean. Yet there was a great continent out there to the west.

Now may I ask you, “Did Jesus Christ know of this North American Continent?” Your only answer could be, “Yes, of course He did.”

Let me ask another question, “Did Jesus Christ know that a great nation would be established here?” Of course He did!

Still another question, please -”Did Jesus Christ know this great nation (yet to be born) would be Christian from its beginning?” Of course He knew that, for He Himself is the source and Author of the faith we call “Christian.”

Now one more question, “Is it possible that this great nation, known to Jesus, was never mentioned, indicated, or foretold in the Bible?”

Consider this, “I will make of thee a great nation” (Gen. 12:2). “The kingdom of God shall be given to a nation bringing forth the fruits thereof” (Matt. 21:43). Where is this great nation, which is bringing forth the fruits of the kingdom of God? The answer is quite obvious: you are living in it. See to it that you make your calling and election sure. Pastor W.B. Record, Truth & Liberty Magazine, September 1964

In The Beginnings of New England, American historian and philosopher John Fiske wrote:

The men who undertook this work were not at all free from self consciousness. They believed that they were doing a wonderful thing. They felt themselves to be instruments in accomplishing a kind of “manifest destiny.” Their exodus was that of a chosen people who were at length to lay the everlasting foundations of God’s kingdom upon earth. Such opinions … took a strong colour from their assiduous study of the Old Testament…. In every propitious event they saw a special providence, an act of divine intervention…. This steadfast faith in an unseen ruler and guide was to them a “pillar of cloud by day and of fire by night.  John Fiske (Edmund Fisk Green), The Beginnings of New England (Cambridge, MA: H.O. Houghton, Mifflin and Company, The Liberty Press, 1889) vol. 1, p. 308

Samuel Eliot Morison commented on Pastor Cotton’s vision of this New Canaan land:

[Pastor John] Cotton’s sermon was of a nature to inspire these new children of Israel with the belief that they were the Lord’s chosen people; destined, if they kept the covenant with Him, to people and fructify this new Canaan in the western wilderness.Samuel Eliot Morison, Colonial America (1887) p. 25.

John Cotton

Pastor John Cotton, D.D., sermon to fellow Puritans departing for America in 1630, God’s Promise to His Plantation (London, UK: William Jones, 1630) pp. 13-14.
Was it just by coincidence or was it by the providence of God that in 1630 a young Puritan minister by the name of John Cotton chose 2 Samuel 7: 10 as his text for a farewell message to a boatload of fellow Puritans departing for America

2Sa 7:10 “And I shall appoint a place for My people Yisra’ĕl, and shall plant them, and they shall dwell in a place of their own and no longer be afraid, neither shall the children of wickedness oppress them again, as at the first,

In his book New England’s Memorial, Nathaniel Morton demonstrated how perfectly America’s early  settlers fulfilled this passage from Isaiah:

That especially the seed of Abraham his servant, and the children of Jacob his chosen, may remember his marvelous works (Psal. 105.5-6.) in the beginning and progress of the planting of New England, his wonders, and the judgements of his mouth; how that God brought a vine into this wilderness; that he cast out the heathen and planted it; and he also made room for it, and he caused it to take deep root, and it filled the land; so that it hath sent forth its boughs to the sea, and its branches to the river. (Psal. 80.8-9.) And not only so, but also that He hath guided his people by his strength to his holy habitation, and planted them in the mountain of his inheritance, (Exod. 15.13.) in respect of precious gospel-enjoyments. So that we may not only look back to former experiences of God’s goodness to our predecessors, (though many years before) and so have our faith strengthened in the mercies of God for our times….Nathaniel Morton, New England’s Memorial (Cambridge, MA: S.G. and M.J. for John Usher, 1669), reproduced with extracts from other writers (Boston, MA: Congregational Board of Publication, 1854) pp. 13-14.

Cotton Mather

In Magnalia Christi Americana; or, The Ecclesiastical History of New England, Pastor Cotton Mather, writing of the dangers facing the Puritans seeking asylum beyond the seas, pictured America as a desolate wilderness:

… the God of Heaven served as it were a summons upon the spirits of his people in the English nation; stirring up the spirits of thousands which never saw the faces of each other, with a most unanimous inclination to leave all the pleasant accommodations of their native country, and go over a terrible ocean, into a more terrible desert, for the pure enjoyment of all his ordinances.
Pastor Cotton Mather, D.D., Magnalia Christi Americana: or, The Ecclesiastical History of New-England, 1702 and subsequent editions reprint. (New York, NY: Russell & Russell, 1967) vol. 1, p. 69.
Being happily arrived at New-England, our new planters found the difficulties of a rough and hard wilderness presently assaulting them… Mather, vol. 1, p. 77.

Never was any plantation brought unto such a considerableness, in a space of time so inconsiderable! … an howling wilderness in a few years became a pleasant land, accommodated with the necessaries, yea, and the conveniences of humane life Mather, vol. 1, p. 80

In his foreword “An Attestation to this Church-History of New England” in the above mentioned book, John Higginson also depicted America as an empty wilderness:

It hath been deservedly esteemed one of the great and wonderful Works of God in this last age, that the Lord stirred up the spirits of so many thousands of his [Celto-Saxon] servants, to leave the pleasant land of England, the land of their nativity, and to transport themselves, and families, over the ocean sea, into a desert land in America, at the distance of a thousand leagues from their own country; and this, merely on the account of pure and undefiled Religion [Christianity], not knowing how they should have their daily bread, but trusting in God for that, in the way of seeking first the kingdom of God, and the righteousness thereof: And that the Lord was pleased to grant such a gracious presence of his with them, and such a blessing upon their undertakings, that within a few years a wilderness was subdued before them, and so many Colonies planted, Towns erected, and Churches settled, wherein the true and living God in Christ Jesus, is worshipped and served, in a place where, time out of mind, had been nothing before but Heathenism, Idolatry, and Devilworship; and that the Lord has added so many of the blessings of Heaven and earth for the comfortable subsistence of his people in these ends of the earth. Surely of this work, and of this time, it shall be said, what hath God wrought? And, this is the Lord’s doings, it is marvellous in our eyes! Even so (O Lord) didst thou lead thy people, to make thyself a glorious name!

John Higginson, “An Attestation to This Church-History of New-England,” foreword to Pastor Cotton Mather, D.D., Magnalia Christi Americana: or, The Ecclesiastical History of New-England, 1702 and subsequent editions reprint. (New York, NY: Russell & Russell, 1967) vol. 1, p. 13.

Pastor William Gordon was another voice of the early American church. He not only preached concerning what this land had been, but he also preached what it was becoming in light of Isaiah 35:1-2:

They came from a well-cultured kingdom to a savage people and a wild country, enough to discourage the stoutest. However, they ventured to take up their abode in it…. The face of the colony is not less changed for the better since first settled than what is set forth in the language of Isaiah’s prophecy: “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad; the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing; the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it; the excellency of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God.  Pastor William Gordon, discourse preached on December 15, 1774, quoted in John Wingate Thornton, The Pulpit of the American Revolution: Political Sermons of the Period of 1776, 1860 ed., reprint. (Boston, MA: Da Capo Press, 1970) p. 210-211.

Pastor Emry contrasted the new promised land with the old promised land:

A look at the United States, and Canada, reveals a different picture. Here we find the only land on the face of this earth that is truly a land of unwalled villages. Our Christian ancestors left castles, walls, and moats in the “old world” when they came to the “New World,” and our cities are without walls. God who knows the end from the beginning, can be expected to be accurate in His word.
Emry, p. 10.

[Pastor] John Norton, in the Election Sermon of 1661, said that theycame “into this wilderness to live under the order of the gospel”; “that our polity [government] may be a gospel polity, and may be compleat according to the Scriptures, answering fully the Word of God: this is the work of our generation, and the very work we engaged for into this wilderness; this is the scope and end of it … written upon the forehead of New England … the compleat walking in the faith of the gospel, according to the order of the gospel.”

The venerable [John] Higginson, of Salem, in his Election Sermon of 1663, stated the point with great fulness, as follows: “It concerneth New England always to remember that they are originally a plantation religious, not a plantation of trade…. Let merchants … remember this:

that worldly gain was not the end and design of the people of New England, but religion….”

In the [Harvard University] Election Sermon of 1677 … Increase Mather uttered these words: “It was love to God and to Jesus Christ which brought our  fathers into this wilderness…. There never was a generation that did so perfectly shake off the dust of Babylon, both as to ecclesiastical and civil constitutions, as the first generation of Christians that came into this land for the gospel’s sake.”

[Pastor] William Hubbard, the historian, in a Fast-day sermon, preached June 24, 1682, declared that the fathers “came not hither for the world, or for land, or for traffic; but for religion, and for liberty of conscience in the worship of God, which was their only design.”

The historical fact was stated by President [Ezra] Stiles, of Yale College, in 1783: “It is certain that civil dominion was but the second motive, religion the primary one, with our ancestors, in coming hither and settling this land. It was not so much their design to establish religion for the benefit of the state, as civil government for the benefit of religion, and as subservient, and even necessary, towards the peaceable enjoyment and unmolested exercise of religion – of that religion for which they fled to these ends of the earth.”  John Wingate Thornton, The Pulpit of the American Revolution: Political Sermons of the Period of 1776, 1860 ed., reprint. (Boston, MA: Da Capo Press, 1970) pp. xviii-xix.

I WRITE the WONDERS of the CHRISTIAN RELIGION , flying from the depravations of Europe, to the American Strand; and, assisted by the Holy Author of that Religion, I do with all conscience of Truth, required therein by Him, who is the Truth itself, report the wonderful displays of His infinite Power, Wisdom, Goodness, and Faithfulness, wherewith His Divine Providence hath irradiated an Indian Wilderness.  Pastor Cotton Mather, D.D., Magnalia Christi Americana: or, The Ecclesiastical History of New-England, 1702, subsequent ed. reprint. (New York, NY: Russell & Russell, 1967), vol. 1, p. 25.

The people in the fleet that arrived at New-England, in the year 1630, left the fleet almost, as the family of Noah did the ark, having a whole world before them to be peopled … but where-ever they sat down, they were so mindful of their errand into the wilderness, that still one of their first works was to gather a church into the covenant and order of the gospel.  Mather, vol. 1, pp. 78-89

In the year 1643, after divers essays made in some former years, the several colonies of New-England became in fact, as well as name, UNITED COLONIES. And an instrument was formed, wherein having declared, “That we all came into these parts of America with the same end and aim -namely, to advance the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ, and enjoy the liberties of the gospel with purity and peace….”  Mather, vol. 1, p. 160.

The ministers and Christians by whom New-England was first planted, were a chosen company of men; picked out of, perhaps, all the counties in England, and this by no human contrivance, but by a strange work of God upon the spirits of men that were, no ways, acquainted with one another, inspiring them, as one man, to secede into a wilderness … a reasonable expression once used by that eminent … lieutenant-governor of New-England … “God sifted three nations [England, Scotland,and Ireland], that he might bring choice grain into this wilderness.”

The design of these refugees, thus carried into the [North American] wilderness, was, that they might there “sacrifice unto the Lord their God:” it was, that they might maintain the power of godliness and practice the evangelical worship of our Lord Jesus Christ, in all the parts of it ….Mather, vol. 1, p. 240

In “An Attestation to This Church-History of New-England,” the foreword to Magnalia, Christi Americana, John Higginson wrote:

It hath been deservedly esteemed one of the great and wonderful works of God in this last age, that the Lord stirred up the spirits of so many thousands of his servants, to leave the pleasant land of England, the land of their nativity, and to transport themselves, and families, over the ocean sea, into a desert land in America … and this, merely on the account of pure and undefiled Religion … seeking first the kingdom of God, and the righteousness thereof… Surely of this work, and of this time, it shall be said, what hath God wrought? And, this is the Lord’s doings, it is marvellous in our eyes! Even so (O Lord) didst thou lead thy people, to make thyself a glorious name [Isa. 63:141]  John Higginson, “An Attestation to This Church-History of New-England,” Foreword to Pastor Cotton Mather, Magnalia Christi Americana: or, The Ecclesiastical History of New-England, 1702, subsequent ed. reprint. (New York, NY: Russell & Russell, 1967) vol. 1, p. 13.

Daniel Webster

…if God prosper us, we shall here begin a work which shall last for ages; we shall plant here a new society, in the principles of the fullest liberty and the purest religion; we shall subdue this wilderness which is before us; we shall fill this region of the great continent, which stretches almost from pole to pole, with civilization and Christianity; the temples of the true God shall rise, where now ascends the smoke of idolatrous sacrifice ….Daniel Webster, discourse at Plymouth Rock, 2 December 1820, The Works of Daniel Webster (Boston, MA: Little, Brown, and Company, 1858) vol. 1, p. 10.

Patrick Henry

America’s Christian foundations could not be affirmed any more emphatically than they were by Patrick Henry:

It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ.  Patrick Henry, quoted in David Barton, The Myth of Separation (Aledo, TX: Wallbuilders Press, 1992) p. 117.

David Josiah Brewer

U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice David Josiah Brewer provided additional evidence that America began as a Christian nation:

We classify nations in various ways, as, for instance, by their form of government. One is a kingdom, another an empire, and still another a republic. Also by race. Great Britain is an Anglo-Saxon nation, France a Gaelic, Germany a Teutonic, Russia a Slav. And still again by religion. One is a Mohammedan nation, others are heathen, and still others are Christian nations….

This Republic is classified among the Christian nations of the world. It was so formally declared by the Supreme Court of the United States. In the case of HOLY TRINITY CHURCH vs. UNITED STATES, 143 U.S. 471, that Court … added, “these and many other matters which might be noticed, add a volume of unofficial declarations to the mass of organic utterances that this is a Christian nation….”

Nathaniel Morton also observed:

In the year 1602, divers godly Christians of our English nation … entered into covenant to walk with God, and one with another, in the enjoyment of the ordinances of God, according to the primitive pattern in the word of God .

1639 – FUNDAMENTAL AGREEMENT OF THE COLONY OF NEW HAVEN [Connecticut]: … We all agree that the scriptures hold forth a perfect rule for the direction and government of all men in duties which they are to perform to God and to man, as well in families and commonwealth as in matters of the church; so likewise in all public officers which concern civil order, as choice of magistrates and officers, making and repealing laws, dividing allotments of inheritance, and all things of like nature, we will, all of us, be ordered by the rules which the scripture holds forth; and we agree that such persons may be entrusted with such matters of government as are described in Exodus 18:21 and Deuteronomy 1: 13 with Deuteronomy 17:15 and I Corinthians 6:1,6 & 7.

1639 – CONNECTICUT HISTORY: In June 1639, however, a more definite statement of political principles was framed, in which it was clearly stated that the rules of Scripture should determine the ordering of the Church, the choice of magistrates, the making and repeal of laws … that only Church members could become free burgesses and officials of the colony … and in 1644 the general court decided that the judicial laws of God as they were declared by Moses should constitute a rule for all courts ….

1776 – DELAWARE CONSTITUTION: … officeholders were required to make and subscribe to the following declaration: “I … do profess faith in God the Father, and in Jesus Christ His Only Son, and the Holy Ghost, one God, blessed forevermore; and I do acknowledge the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testament to be given by divine inspiration. “

1776 – NORTH CAROLINA CONSTITUTION: … no person who shall deny the being of God or the truth of the Protestant religion, or the divine authority either of the Old or New Testaments, or who shall hold religious principles incompatible with the freedom and safety of the State, shall be capable of holding any office or place of trust or profit in the civil department within the State.

1777 -VERMONT CONSTITUTION: …required of every member of the house of representatives that he take this oath: “I do believe in one God, the creator and governor of the universe, the rewarder of the good and punisher of the wicked, and I do acknowledge the scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be given by divine inspiration, and own and profess the Protestant religion. “

Alexis de Tocqueville recognized the uniqueness of our beginnings and wrote of the Scriptural, moral and civil code which was the foundation for those early laws of New England:

… in studying the earliest historical and legislative records of New England. They exercised the rights of sovereignty; they named their magistrates, concluded peace or declared war, made police regulations, and enacted laws as if their allegiance was due only to God. Nothing can be more curious and, at the same time more instructive, than the legislation of that period; it is there that the solution of the great social problem which the United States now present[s] to the world is to be found.

Amongst these documents we shall notice, as especially characteristic, the code of laws promulgated by the little State of Connecticut in 1650. The legislators of Connecticut begin with the penal laws, and … they borrow their provisions from the text of Holy Writ. “Whosoever shall worship any other God than the Lord,” says the preamble of the Code, “shall surely be put to death.” This is followed by ten or twelve enactments of the same kind, copied verbatim from the books of Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy. Blasphemy, sorcery, adultery, and rape were punished with death ….

The 1879 McGuffey’s Sixth Eclectic Reader clearly illustrated how early America’s Christianity influenced her government:

Their  form of government was as strictly theocratical … insomuch that it would be difficult to say where there was any civil authority among them entirely distinct from ecclesiastical jurisdiction.

Whenever a few of them settled a town, they immediately gathered themselves into a church; and their elders were magistrates, and their code of laws was the Pentateuch]….

God was their King; and they regarded him as truly and literally so ….

James Madison, “the Father of the U.S. Constitution” and our fourth President, understood that the future of our American civilization was (and still is) dependent upon the Laws of God:

We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future of all of our political institutions upon the capacity of mankind for self-government; upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to control ourselves, to sustain ourselves according to the Ten Commandments of God.

Jewish Encyclopedia

UNITED STATES: … the early forms of government and laws were fashioned in a manner upon Old Testament times. This was particularly the case in Massachusetts (whose first criminal code [in 16411 gave chapter and verse from the Bible as its authority), as also in Connecticut. The records of the colony of New Haven, founded in 1638, have distinctly Old Testament character, and Biblical precedent is quoted for almost every governmental act. One can form some opinion of the measure of Old Testament influence when one considers that in the code of colony laws adopted in New Haven in 1656 there are 107 references to the Old Testament....

But Jews as individuals contributed little or nothing to direct the trend of colonial legislation of this early period.

Forefathers of the Puritans & Immigrants to America believed they were Israel

Alfred the Great, King of Wessex, England
During his reign from 871 to 899 the Anglo-Saxon king Alfred the Great declared:

Be ye kind to the stranger within thy gates, for ye were strangers in the land of the Egyptians

Scottish Declaration of Independence
In 1320 the Scottish Declaration of Independence was drawn up by King Robert (the Bruce) and twenty-five Scottish nobles in which the Scots are addressed as Israelites. This great document states the following regarding their migrations:

…the Scots … passing from the greater Scythia … and coming thence one thousand two hundred years after the outgoing of the people of Israel … acquired for themselves the possessions in the West…

Adam de Houghton, Bishop of Saint David, Wales
In 1377 Adam de Houghton, the Bishop of Saint David, Wales, delivered a speech before the British Parliament in which he recognized England as Israel:

…you may embrace your noble King … there is through him [King Edward III] that peace over Israel which the Scriptures name – Israel being the heritage of God, and that heritage being also England. For in good truth, I believe that God would never have honoured this country by victories such as had given glory to Israel, had He not intended it for His heritage also.

William Tyndale, English Reformer and Martyr
In 1530 the great English religious reformer, William Tyndale, who translated the New Testament and the Pentateuch into English announced his amazing discovery:

…the properties of the Hebrew tongue agreeth a thousand times more with the English than with the Latin. The manner of speaking is both one; so that in a thousand places thou needest not but to translate it into the English, word for word; when thou must seek a compass in the Latin, and yet shall have much work to translate it well-favouredly, so that it have the same grace and sweetness, sense and pure understanding with it in the Latin, and as it hath in the Hebrew. A thousand parts better may it [the Hebrew tongue] be translated into the English, than into the Latin.

Sir Francis Drake, English Navigator and Admiral
In 1587 Sir Francis Drake, an explorer for Queen Elizabeth I, wrote to the religious writer John Foxe beseeching his prayers:

God may be glorious, His church, our Queen and country preserved, the enemies of truth vanquished, that we may have continued peace in Israel…. Our enemies are many, but our Protector commandeth the whole world….

King James VI of Scotland and I of England

King James VI of Scotland (James I of England) (1566-1625), who commissioned the King James Bible, claimed that the Lord had made him King over Israel; the gold coin of his day, bearing his head was called the “Jacobus” and James had the reverse inscribed in Latin the prophecy of Ezekiel 37:22, “I will make of them one nation.”

Pastor John Cotton, Puritan Clergyman
In 1630, prior to the departure of the ship Abrella for America with Massachusetts Bay Colony Governor John Winthrop and his fellow Puritans aboard, the young Puritan minister John Cotton preached a stirring farewell message taken from 2 Samuel 7:10:

I  will appoint a place for My people Israel and will plant them, that they may live in their own place and not be disturbed….

Pastor Cotton further exhorted his audience:

Go forth … with a publick spirit … have a tender care … to your children, that they doe not degenerate as the Israelites did….

American historian Samuel Eliot Morison wrote the following concerning Pastor Cotton’s sermon:

Cotton’s sermon was of a nature to inspire these new children of Israel with the belief that they were the Lord’s chosen people; destined, if they kept the covenant with Him, to people and fructify this new Canaan in the western wilderness.

B. Woodbridge concluded his epitaph for Pastor John Cotton with the following words:

Though Moses [referring to Pastor John Cotton] be [dead], yet Joshua is not dead: I mean renowned [Pastor John] Norton; worthy he, Successor to our Moses, is to be. O happy Israel in America. In such a Moses, such a Joshua.

Edward Johnson, English Historian
In 1630 historian Edward Johnson, writing of those early Puritan and Pilgrim settlers, often made reference to them as being Israel:

…the Lambe is preparing his Bride … yee the ancient Beloved of Christ, whom he of old led by hand from Egypt to Canaan through that great and terrible Wildernesse.

…you the Seed of Israel both lesse and more, the rattling of your dead bones is at hand, Sinewes, Flesh and Life: at the Word of Christ it comes.

…you  People of Israel gather together as one Man, and together as one Tree. Ezekiel 37 and 23.31

Then judge all you … whether these poore New England People, be not the forerunners of Christ’s Army, and the marvelous providences which you shall now heare, be not the very Finger of God, and whether the Lord hath not sent this people to Preach in this Wildernesse, and to proclaime to all Nations, the neere approach of the most wonderful workes that ever the Sonnes of men saw. Will not you believe that a Nation can be borne in a day [Isa. 66:8 – a Scripture that can only be fulfilled in Israel]?

This year the great troubles in our native country encreasing, and that hearing prophane Esau had mustered up all thye Bands he could make to come against his brother Jacob, these wandering race of Jacobites deemed it now high time to implore the Lord for his especial aid in this time of their deepest distress.

As Jacob professes, I came over this Jordan with my staff, and now have I gotten two Bands; so they came over this boisterous billow-boyling Ocean, a few poor scattered stones raked out of the heaps of rubbish, and thou Lord Christ has now so far exalted them, as to lay them sure in thy Sion … the seed of Christ’s Church in the posterity of Israel should be cut off, and therefore pleaded the promise of the Lord in the multiplying of his seed; so these people at this very time, pleaded not only the Lord’s promise to Israel, but to his only son Christ Jesus.

Pastor Jonathan Mitchell, Puritan Preacher
On October 4, 1649, Pastor Jonathan Mitchell wrote in his diary:

…God will humble me before the sun, and in the sight of all Israel

On August 8, 1667, at Pastor John Wilson’s funeral, Pastor Mitchell included the following in his eulogy:

Ah! Now there’s none who does not know, that this day in our Israel, is fall’n a great and good man too

Nathaniel Morton, New Plymouth Court Secretary
In 1669 in New England’s Memorial, Nathaniel Morton wrote of God moving the seed of Abraham to New England:

That especially the seed of Abraham his servant, and the children of Jacob his chosen, may remember his marvelous works (Psal. 105.5,6.) in the beginning and progress of the planting of New-England, his wonders, and the judgments of his mouth; how that God brought a vine into this wilderness; that he cast out the heathen and planted them in the mountain of his inheritance (Exod. 15.13.) in respect of precious gospel-enjoyments. So that we may not only look back to former experiences of God’s goodness to our [Israelite] predecessors, (though many years before) and so have our faith strengthened in the mercies of God for our times

I shall close up this small history with a word of advice to the rising generation…. God did once plant a noble vine in New-England, but it is degenerated into the plant of a strange vine. Jer. ii, 21. It were well that it might be said that the rising generation did serve the Lord all the days of such as in this our Israel …Josh. xxiv, 31.

Pastor James Keith, American Clergyman
On October 30, 1676, in a letter to Pastor John Cotton, Pastor James Keith wrote the following:

Let us join our prayers, at the throne of grace, with all our might, that the Lord would so dispose of all of public motions and affairs, that his Jerusalem, in this wilderness, may be the habitation of justice and the mountain of holiness

Pastor Increase Mather, American Clergyman and Author
In 1681, in a preface to a discourse on Urian Oakes, Pastor Increase Mather wrote the following:

…[Urian Oakes] at last called to the head of the “sons of the prophets” in this New-English Israel

Pastor John Bunyan, English Preacher and Author
Regarding the beliefs of Pastor John Bunyan (1628-1688), author of Pilgrim’s Progress, Rabbi Louis Finkelstein commented:

…Bunyan actually fancied himself an Israelite

Pastor Cotton Mather, American Clergyman and Historian
In 1702 a Boston minister Cotton Mather wrote the following concerning New England and some of her earlier inhabitants:

…in our hastening voyage unto the History of a new-English Israel

…I am going to give unto the Christian reader an history of some feeble attempts made in the American hemisphere to anticipate the state of the New-Jerusalem

These good people [the first settlers of Plymouth, Massachusetts] were now satisfied, they had as plain a command of Heaven to attempt a removal [from England, Ireland and Scotland], as ever their father Abraham had for his leaving the Chaldean territories…

Among these passengers were divers worthy and useful men, who were come to seek the welfare of this little Israel…
The colony might fetch its own description from the dispensations of the great God, unto his ancient Israel, and say, “O, God of Hosts, thou has brought a vine out of England…

whilst he [Massachusetts Bay Colony’s Governor John Winthrop] thus did, as our New-English Nehemiah, the part of a ruler in managing the public affairs of our American Jerusalem … he made himself still an exacter parallel unto the the governour of Israel…
Make room, then, for Urian Oakes, ye records of New-England. He was born in England … whose liberal education in our College have rendered the family not he least in our little Israel…

Dean Jacque Abadie, French Educator and Author
In 1723 Dean Jacques Abbadie of Killaloe, Ireland, wrote regarding the whereabouts of the “lost” Israelites:

Unless the Ten Tribes of Israel are flown into the air, or sunk into the earth; they must be those ten Gothic Tribes that entered Europe in the fifth century, overthrew the Roman Empire and founded the ten nations of modern Europe.

Alexander Cruden, Scottish Bible Concordance Compiler
In 1761 on a page addressed “TO THE KING” in the well-known Concordance of Alexander Cruden, the author renders this prayer:

May the great God be the guide of your life, and direct and prosper you, that it may be said by the present and future ages, that King George the Third hath been an Hezekiah to our British Israel.

In 1773 the men of Marlborough, Connecticut, made this proclamation:

Death is more eligible than slavery. A freeborn people are not required by the religion of Jesus Christ to submit to tyranny, but may make use of such power as God has given them to recover and support their laws and liberties… (they) implored the Ruler above the skies, that He would make bare His arm in defense of His church and people, and let Israel go.

Jonathan Trumbull, Connecticut Governor
In a letter dated July 13, 1775, to George Washington (then Commander-in-Chief of the Continental Army) Jonathan Trumbull, Governor of Connecticut, wrote in part:

…be strong and very courageous, May the God of the Armies of  Israel shower down the blessings of His Divine Providence on You

George Washington

[Almighty God] Endow with the spirit of wisdom those whom in Thy name we entrust the authority of government, that there may be peace and justice at home, and that through obedience to Thy law, we may show forth Thy praise among the nations of the earth….

One may wonder at whether Governor Trumbull was referring to the Continental Army as one of the “armies of Israel.” There appears no question as to his intent when one reads another exhortation written in his own hand later that same year. In a public proclamation concerning Thanksgiving, dated October 14, 1775, Governor Trumbull proclaimed:

That God would … guide our affairs in this dark and difficult Day; and make them know what Israel ought to do … that He would confirm and increase Union and Harmony in the Colonies, and throughout America…

Great Seal of the United States of America
On July 4, 1776, the Continental Congress appointed a committee to design a seal for the emerging new nation. The committee was composed of Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams. Both Franklin and Jefferson proposed designs related to ancient Israel. While John Adams’ contribution is not recorded here, he wrote to his wife, Abigail, on August 1, 1776, and described in part what the committee had thus far accomplished:

Dr. F[ranklin] proposes a Device for a seal. Moses lifting up his Wand, and dividing the Red Sea, and Pharaoh, in his Chariot overwhelmed with the Waters … The motto: Rebellion to Tyrants is Obedience to God.

Mr. Jefferson proposed. The Children of Israel in the Wilderness, led by a Cloud by day, and Pillar of Fire by night, and on the others Side Hengist and Horsa, the Saxon Chiefs, from whom We claim the Honour of being descended and whose Political Principles and Form of Government We have assumed.

Following are later depictions of these ideas by Franklin and Jefferson:

Pastor John Clark, American Preacher
In 1781 in his election sermon, Pastor Jonas Clark spoke of the children of the captivity who came to this new land to serve God:

Under this happy [Massachusetts] constitution we have seen, to universal satisfaction, that blessed prophecy concerning GOD’S people after their return from captivity, literally fulfilled unto us “There congregation shall be established before me – their nobles shall be of themselves, and their Governor shall proceed from the midst of them.” (Jer. 30:20-21)

May we not – yea, rather, ought we not, upon this joyful occasion, in a deep sense of our obligations to heaven, to ascribe the glory of all to GOD, and devoutly acknowledge that this is the LORD’S doing; it is marvelous in our eyes!

On this joyful day we are invited to see God, the Supreme ruler, on the throne of his holiness, the favour and defence of an afflicted land; “The princes of the people of the God of Abraham gathered together”: And ‘The Shields of the earth.” (Ps. 47:9) The rulers of every department, devoting themselves to the service of God and their country, in devout acknowledgement of his government, to the end, that God might be greatly exalted, in the good of his people, by their administration.

Noah Webster, American Statesman and Lexicographer
In 1783 Noah Webster wrote The Elementary Spelling Book, better known as the Blue-Back Speller. Following “Lesson Number 123” we find Mr. Webster’s sentiments regarding our Israelite relatives:

All Israelites are brethren, descendents of common parents. How unnatural and wicked it is to make war on our brethren, to conquer them or to plunder and destroy them

George Washington, American General and President

In 1785 George Washington referred to America as the “second land of promise,and in his first inaugural address in April, 1789, he accredited Providence for advancing the affairs of this new nation:

No People can be bound to acknowledge and adore the invisible hand, which conducts the Affairs of men more than the People of the United States. Every step, by which they have advanced to the character of an independent nation, seems to have been distinguished by some token of providential agency

Thomas Jefferson, American Statesman and President
In 1814 in a letter written to Dr. Walter Jones regarding the death of President George Washington, Thomas Jefferson conveyed his belief in an American Israel:

I felt on his [George Washington’s] death, with my countyrmen, that “verily a great man hath fallen this day in Israel.”

Pastor B. Murphey, Canadian Preacher
In 1817 Pastor Murphey provided evidence for the Israelites’ migrations into Ireland:

Israelites came from Egypt into Ireland.

Washington Irving, American Essayist, Novelist, and Historian
In 1824 in his story “The Devil and Tom Walker,” Washington Irving wrote the following about a man whom he named “Absalom Crowinshield” who lived in New England in the 1700s:

It was announced in the papers with the usual flourish, that “A great man had fallen in Israel.”

Sir Walter Scott, Scottish Poet and Novelist
In 1830 in his novel Woodstock, Scottish author Sir Walter Scott had Oliver Cromwell using these words:

…as my soul liveth, and as He liveth who hath made me [Oliver Cromwell] a ruler in Israel

United States District Court for the District of Maine
On November 5, 1840, in a case titled “The Huntress, 12 F. Cas. 984, 993” regarding Constitutional neglect, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maine declared:

…we may well ask, with some feelings of surprise, where during these seven years, were slumbering the watchmen of our American Israel.

Charters & Constitutions

In several colonies and States a profession of the Christian faith was made an indispensable condition to holding office. In the frame of government for Pennsylvania, prepared by William Penn, in 1683, it was provided that “all treasurers, judges, and other officers, and all members elected to serve in provincial council and general assembly, and all that have right to elect such members, shall be such as profess faith in Jesus Christ.” And in the charter of privileges for that colony, given in 1701 by William Penn and approved by the colonial assembly, it was provided “that all persons who also profess to believe in Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world, shall be capable to serve this government in any capacity, both legislatively and executively.”**

**Similar requirements can also be found in the Delaware Constitution of 1776; the New Hampshire Constitutions of 1704 and 1792; the Fundamental Constitutions of the Carolinas; the Massachusetts Constitution of 1780; the Fundamental Order of Connecticut for its Governor; the Vermont Constitution of 1777; the Maryland Constitution of 1776; the current Maryland Bill of Rights, Article 37; the Mississippi Constitution of 1817; and the Arkansas Constitution of 1874 with 1963 supplements – most of which are listed in Justice Brewer’s speech.

1606 – The Charter for the Virginia Colony read in part: “To the glory of
His divine Majesty, in propagating of the Christian religion to such people
as yet live in ignorance of the true knowledge and worship of God.”

1606 – JAMESTOWN CHARTER – Purpose: “…in propagation of the Christian religion.”

1606 – FIRST VIRGINIA CHARTER: “…tend to the Glory of his Divine Majesty, in propagating of Christian Religion to such People, as yet live in Darkness and miserable Ignorance of the true Knowledge and Worship of God….”

1610 – NEW ENGLAND CHARTER – Aims in settling America: “…to increase the knowledge of the Omnipotent God and the propagation of our Christian faith.”*
*”First, it will be a service unto the Church of great consequence, to carry the Gospel unto those parts of the world, and raise a bulwark against the Kingdom of AntiChrist….” Pastor Cotton Mather, D.D., “General Considerations for the Plantation of New England,” Magnalia Christi Americana or The Ecclesiastical History of New-England quoted by Alexis de Tocqueville in Democracy in America (New York, NY: The Colonial Press, 1899) Vol. 2, p. 360.

1609 – Second Virginia Charter – Purpose: “to live in fear and true worship of Almighty God, Christian peace, and civil quietness.”

1610 – New England Charter -Aims in settling America: “to increase the knowledge of the Omnipotent God and the propagation of our Christian faith.  Walter S. Remmie, “This Is a Christian Nation,” Kingdom Digest (Irving, TX) July 1981, p. 28.

1620 – MAYFLOWER COMPACT (the first legal document in America): “In the name of God amen … having undertaken for the glory of God, and [the] advancement of the Christian faith….”

1620 – King James I granted the Charter of the Plymouth council. “In the
hope thereby to advance the enlargement of the Christian religion, to the
glory of God Almighty.”

1620 – The Pilgrims sign the Mayflower Compact aboard the Mayflower, in
Plymouth Harbor. “For the glory of God and advancement of ye Christian faith.
doe by these presents solemnly & mutually in ye presence of God and one of
another, covenant & combine our selves together into a civil body
politick[sic].”

1623 – “But God gave them health and strength in a good measure; and
showed them by experience the truth of the word, Deuteronomy 8:3: ‘Man does
not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the
Lord.’” (William Bradford, in BHOPP, p. 175).

1624 -SWEDISH CHARTER OF DELAWARE COLONY: “In the first place God’s glory, which above all must be especially cared for and promoted, can be increased thereby, His blessed Word and Holy Gospel planted and spread among all kinds of people and many thousand souls be brought to the true knowledge and understanding of God.”

1629 – The first Charter of Massachusetts read in part: “For the
directing, ruling, and disposing of all other Matters and Thinges, whereby
our said People may be soe religiously, peaceablie, and civilly governed, as
their good life and orderlie Conversacon, maie wynn and incite the Natives of
the Country to the Knowledg and Obedience of the onlie true God and Savior of
Mankinde, and the Christian Fayth, which in our Royall Intencon, and The
Adventurers free profession, is the principall Ende of the
Plantacion….”[sic]

1632 – MARYLAND CHARTER: [our Celto-Saxon forefathers were] animated with a laudable and pious zeal for extending the Christian religion … Cecil Calvert [founder of Maryland] wrote in a letter at the time: “At the place prepared we [Celto-Saxon Christians] all kneeled down and said certain prayers; taking possession of the country for our Saviour and for our sovereign Lord.”  Nathanial Morton, New England’s Memorial (Cambridge, MA: S.G. and M.J. for John Usher, 1669), reproduced with extracts from other writers (Boston, MA: Congregational Board of Publication, 1854) p. 20.

1630 – Settlement of Massachusetts published under the subtitle of “Wonder-Working Providence of Zion’s Saviour.”

1636 – Harvard, which was the first college in America, whose name-sake and benefactor* stated in his provision for a fund to build a college: “Let every student be plainly instructed, and earnestly pressed to consider well, the main end of his life and studies is, to know God and Jesus Christ which is eternal life, John 17:3, and therefore to lay Christ in the bottom as the only foundation of all sound knowledge and learning.”  1636 Harvard University document, quoted in John le Boutillier, Harvard Hates America: The Odyssey of a Born-again American (South Bend, IN: Gateway Editions, 1978), quoted in Walter S. Remmie, “This is a Christian Nation,” Kingdom Digest (Irving, TX, July 1981) p. 29.
John Harvard (1607-1638) was the namesake and benefactor of Harvard University, founded in 1636 and still operating undera 1650 charter

1638 – The towns of Hartford, Weathersfield, and Windsor adopt the
Fundamental Orders of Connecticut. “To mayntayne and presearve the liberty
and purity of the Gospell of our Lord Jesus, which we now professe….” [sic]

1639 – The governing body of New Hampshire is established. “Considering
with ourselves the holy will of God and our own necessity, that we should not
live without wholesome laws and civil government among us, of which we are
altogether destitute, do, in the name of Christ and in the sight of God,
combine ourselves together to erect and set up among us such government as
shall be, to our best discerning, agreeable to the will of God….”

1639 – Fundamental Orders of Connecticut states as a part of its purpose: “to maintain and preserve the liberty and purity of the Gospel of our Lord Jesus which we now profess…Walter S. Remmie, “This is a Christian Nation,” Kingdom Digest (Irving, TX, July 1981) pp. 28-29. Additional documents, charters, constitutions, etc., are quoted in this same article.

1643 -ARTICLES OF CONFEDERATION: “Whereas we all came into these parts of America with one and ye same end and arms, namely to advance the Kingdom of our Lord, Jesus Christ, and to enjoys ye liberties of ye Gospell in puritie with peace….”
1775 – In Patrick Henry’s speech: “We shall not fight alone. God presides
over the destinies of nations, and will raise up friends for us. The battle
is not to the strong alone; it is to the vigilant, the active, the brave…
Is life so dear, or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains
and slavery? Forbid it Almighty God! I know not what course others may take,
but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!”

1787 Article III of the Northwest Ordinance of 1787: “Religion, morality,
and knowledge, being necessary to good government and the happiness of
mankind, schools and the means of education shall forever be encouraged.”

1789 – George Washington said “Let us with caution indulge the
supposition, that morality can be maintained without religion.” (Schroeder
ed. p. 106)

1794 – John Jay, first Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, in a
letter to his wife, stated “God’s will be done; to him I resign-in him I
confide. Do the like. Any other philosophy applicable to this occasion is
delusive. Away with it.” (Johnston ed. vol. 4, p. 7.)

In addition to the nation’s united expression of faith in God, each individual state has separately acknowledged God as Sovereign and as the Author of liberty. The Legislative Service of the Library of Congress has compiled the provisions of State constitutions relative to the Supreme Being.  Pat Brooks, et.al., “50 Evidences that the U.S.A. is ‘Constitutionally Christian!,” Appendix D, Freedom or Slavery! (Fletcher, NC: New Puritan Library, 1990) p. 159. Pages 159-165 contain the pertinent portion of all 50 state constitutions.

ARIZONA, BILL OF RIGHTS, Section 12: The liberty of conscience shall not be construed to excuse acts of licentiousness….

CALIFORNIA, DECLARATION OF RIGHTS, Article 1, Section4: … The liberty of conscience does not excuse acts that are licentious….

DELAWARE, BILL OF RIGHTS, Article 1, Section 1: …it is the duty of all men to frequently assemble together for public worship of Almighty God; and piety and morality, on which the prosperity of communities depend are hereby promoted….

MARYLAND, BILL OF RIGHTS, Article 36: …it is the duty of every man to worship God; and piety and morality, on which the prosperity of communities depend are hereby promoted….

MASSACHUSETTS, DECLARATION OF RIGHTS, Article 2: It is the right as well as the duty of all men in society, publicly and at stated sessions, to worship the Supreme Being, the great Creator and Preserver of the universe.

Article 3: As the happiness of a people and the good order and preservation of civil government essentially depend upon the piety, religion and morality…. And every denomination of Christians….

MINNESOTA, BILL OF RIGHTS, Section 16: … The right of every man to worship God according to the dictates of his own conscience shall never be infringed … the liberty of conscience hereby secured shall not be so construed as to excuse acts of licentiousness….

MISSISSIPPI, BILL OF RIGHTS, Section 18: … The rights hereby secured shall not be construed to justify acts of licentiousness injurious to morals or dangerous to the peace and safety of the state, or to exclude the Holy Bible from use in any public school of this state.

NEBRASKA, BILL OF RIGHTS, Article 1, Section 4: All persons have a natural indefeasible right to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of their own conscience…. Religion, morality, and knowledge, being essential to good government, it shall be the duty of the legislature to pass suitable laws to protect every religious denomination in the peaceful enjoyment of its own mode of public worship….

NEW HAMPSHIRE, BILL OF RIGHTS, Article 6: As morality and piety, rightly grounded on high principles, will give the best and greatest security to government, and will allay, in the hearts of men, the strongest obligations to due subjection; and as the knowledge of these is most likely to be propagated through society, therefore, the several parishes, bodies, corporate, or religious societies, shall at all times have the right of electing their own teachers, and of contracting with them for their support and maintenance, or both….

OHIO, BILL OF RIGHTS, Section 7: All men have a natural and indefeasible right to worship Almighty God according to the dictates of their own conscience…. Religion, morality, and knowledge, however, being essential to good government….

VIRGINIA, BILL OF RIGHTS, Article 1, Section 16: That religion or the duty which we owe our Creator… it is the mutual duty of all to practice Christian forbearance, love, and charity towards each other….

On the 20th September, 1776, the first constitution of the Delaware State was adopted, the 22d article of which provided, that “every person who shall be chosen a member of either house, or appointed to any office or place of trust, before taking his seat or entering upon the execution of his office, shall take the following oath … to wit: I … do profess of faith in God, the father, and Jesus Christ his only son, and in the Holy Ghost, on God blessed for evermore; and I do acknowledge the holy scriptures of the old and new testaments to be given by divine inspiration.  Clayton, pp. 565-566.

Freedom of Religion

In 1776 there were approximately 2.5 million people in America. Less than one percent of the population was, represented by 20,000 Catholics, 3,000 Jews, and a few Deists; more than ninety-nine percent were Christian Protestants.

After the Constitution was signed and the Bill of Rights made provision of Freedom of Religion these numbers changed drastically.

In 2007 the percentages were as follows:

Which religion had the most to gain?  Roman Catholicism.  Yah willing, this will be addressed in a future study but it begs the question…who had the most to gain by the American Revolution?  The Puritans and those who sought to follow the Scriptures in peace and freedom had no desire to rebel against the king.  It was these same Puritans that refused to allow Catholicism to take a stronghold in America due to the persecution they saw in Europe.  A good reference to learn about more history on the founding of America is ‘Rulers of Evil’ by Tupper Saussy.

Native American Indians

The Indians that were at the first Thanksgiving were the Wampanoag Indians.

The Wampanoag had their own harvest celebration in which they gave thanks for abundant crops to Kiehtan, the Creator. They believed corn, the most valued crop, was a gift from him. The tribe expressed gratitude to the spirits of the game for the animals they killed for food.

Wampanoagtribe.net

tribal elder Gladys Widdiss has to say about the Wampanoag and thanksgiving:

“With Native Americans you do not separate the spiritual from the rest of your life. You’re very involved with who you are, where you came from , and where you are going. We have special holidays or festivals, but every day is a day of thanksgiving.”

Native American’s & Yisrael connection

Cherokee Indians

18th Century explorer, trader, and researcher, James Adair from London, author of History of the American Indians who spent 40 years among the Cherokees, wrote a book named Out of the Flame, listing 23 hard proofs why he believed the Cherokees were descended from Israel. Among other things, the Cherokees were fiercely monotheistic who observed the Ten Commandments to the letter. Harvard professor Barry Fell cites an ancient carving of the Ten Commandments in North America as further proof, another subscriber to the lost tribe theory. Rabbi Marvin Tokayer, former USAF Chaplain and prominent Jewish historian, also holds that the Indians of the Americas are descendants of Northern Israel’s seafaring tribes, Dan and Zevulun. The additional list is long and exhaustive.

Understanding the Exodus Stephen Barrett Segall
James Adair lived among the Cherokee for 40 years beginning in 1736 and John Howard Payne lived among them in the early 1800’s.  Both speak of Cherokee legends about the creation, the great flood, expulsion from Eden, the Tower of Babel, Abraham, crossing the Red Sea, Moses, wandering in the wilderness and the construction of the tent of worship and sacred ark.
The Cherokee believed in life after death, reward and punishment after death for behavior in life, an emphasis on spiritual and sexual purity and the use of baptism and fasting as a means of purification.
On certain days Cherokee would assemple for worship in obedience to Ye ho waah.  If obedient to Ye ho waah’s commandments they would spend eternity with Him in heaven, if not they would spend eternity in a lake of fire and be tortured forever.
In the Cherokee story of creation, the Great Spirit created the world in seven days.  Man was created from the dust of the earth and the Creator breathed life into him.  The Creator saw that man was loney and took one of his ribs to make a woman.  Initially man could live forever, and snakes were not poisonous.  But to make sure the world was not overpopulated the Creator made snakes poisonous and a member of the first family was bitten by a snake and died.  As a result of this all people were doomed to death.
Cherokees tradition stated that Ye ho waah had commanded the people to rest from work every seventh day.  They celebrated the new moon.  They had crystals for predicting the future like the Urim and Thummim.  They had a sacred ark that represented an everlasting bond between them and the Creator.
SEE Cherokee People by Thomas Mails

Cherokee Corn Feasts Parallel Jewish Holy Days!
Also, one of the more convincing evidences is that the Jews followed a Religious Calendar of 7 main Festivals. And so did the Mediavel Cherokee! Even more so, examination of these Celebrations show that they were basically about the same thing–except that the Cherokee followed the growing cycle of corn, rather than that of barley and wheat, as the Jews did.

And for a brief summary, these Mediavel Cherokee Festivals were:1- FIRST FULL MOON OF SPRING,
which would have been literally the Day of Passover, and was accompanied by the slaughter of a lot of animals to prepare the meat for that Feast Day, and was set by the sprouting of the new grass of Spring (like the Passover Barley)! [Not to mention the intensive Spring Cleaning of the Feast!]

 

2- GREEN CORN FESTIVAL,
which was when the corn first balled, so that it could be cooked and eaten–similar to First Fruits, when the Barley was first edible. (However, for the Cherokee, this occured later in the year, more towards Summer, as the Climate in America was not as warm as in the Middle East).

3- MATURE or RIPE CORN FESTIVAL,
which was set for 50 days after the Green Corn Festival (like Pentecost)–and when the Sacred Fire in the Heptagon (like the Jewish Temple Menorah) was re-lit for the next year!

4- GREAT NEW MOON FEAST,
which was set as the first Full Moon of Autumn, and when Cherokee myth said that the whole world was created (and similar to Rosh HaShannah)!

5- PROPITIATION and CEMENTATION CEREMONY,
for cleansing one’s soul of Sin, and joining in UNITY with the Community as they ALL joined with the Creator–setting their relationship to HIM in cement (and similar to the Day of Atonement, with its earlier Kol Nidre purifications and making ammends.) Moreover, as this ended the Torah Study Cycle, many Jewish boys were often bar mitzvahed here, with an appropriate ceremony for Cherokee lads, also.

6- FESTIVAL OF EXALTING or BONDING BUSH CEREMONY (week long),
or a very loose approximating of the 8 Day Feast of Tabernacles–and in the Fall.

Here we see that the Cherokees followed a festival cycle similar to the Scriptural festival cycle.  Did the Wampanoag also trace their festivals back to the Scriptures?

1- Much of the information for the early or Mediavel Cherokee comes from the colonial works of Payne, Butrick, and Adair, a lot of which is quoted in THE CHEROKEE PEOPLE–The Story of the Cherokees, from Earliest Origins to Contemporary Times; by Thomas E. Mails, published in 1992 by Council Oak Books of Tulsa, Oklahoma. 2- Supplemental information confirming Mails work can also be found in The HISTORY OF THE CHEROKEE INDIANS and Their Legends and Folklore by Emmet Starr from Oklahoma City in 1921 but was reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Company of Baltimore, Maryland in 2004.

Pagan Harvest Festivals

Does the holiday of Thanksgiving derive from pagan customs like other holidays in American culture such as Christmas, Easter and Halloweenclick here?

The first feast wasn’t repeated, so it wasn’t the beginning of a tradition. In fact, the colonists didn’t even call the day Thanksgiving. To them, a thanksgiving was a religious holiday in which they would go to church and thank God for a specific event, such as the winning of a battle. On such a religious day, the types of recreational activities that the pilgrims and Wampanoag Indians participated in during the 1621 harvest feast–dancing, singing secular songs, playing games–wouldn’t have been allowed. The feast was a secular celebration, so it never would have been considered a thanksgiving in the pilgrims minds.

History.com

World Book Encyclopedia, 1942 Edition, article entitled, Thanksgiving Day

‘Thanksgiving Day, in the United States and Canada, a day set apart for the giving of thanks to God for the blessings of the year. Originally, it was a harvest thanksgiving, and while the purpose has become less specific, the festival still takes place late in autumn, after the crops have been gathered.’ Indeed, it is probably an outgrowth of the Harvest-Home celebrations in England. Such celebrations are of very ancient origin, being nearly universal among primitive peoples.

The Ancient Greek Harvest festival was called Thesmophora and celebrated Demeter, the founder and goddess of the harvests.  The symbols of Demeter were poppies of ears of corn, a basket of fruit and a little pig.  The Roman goddess of the harvest, Ceres had a festival, which occurred on October 4th and was called the Cerelia.

In ancient China, the 15th day of the eighth month was considered the birthday of the moon. To honor this special occasion, the families held a festival called Chung Chiui trimmed with a meal of moon cakes, roasted pig, and fruit.

Each October the Romans danced to music and watched as parades awed the eyes of onlookers during a celebration they called Cerelia. During the tradition pig and fruit were offered as gifts to the gods, while the people feasted together in thankfulness to their goddess.

Egyptians celebrated fruitful harvest by honoring the God of Vegetation and fertility. This celebration was held each spring and included feasting, music and dancing.

The pagans in Rome celebrated their thanksgiving in early October. The holiday was dedicated to the goddess of the harvest, Ceres, and the holiday was called Cerelia. The Catholic church took over the pagan holiday and it became well established in England, where some of the pagan customs and rituals for this day were observed long after the Roman Empire had disappeared. In England the “Harvest Home” has been observed continuously for centuries.

The ancient Semites called the earth mother Astarte…The Phrygians called her Semele. These deities were absorbed by the Greeks into the one great goddess, Demeter.’ ‘The Roman also had a harvest festival which they called the Cerelia, after Ceres, the Roman goddess of the corn.’

In our own hemisphere, among the Aztecs of Mexico, the harvest took on a grimmer aspect. Each year a young girl, a representation of Xilonen, The goddess of the new corn, was beheaded. The Pawnees also sacrificed a girl. In a more temperate mood, the Cherokees of the American Southeast danced the Green Corn Dance and began the new year at harvest’s end.

We Gather Together: The Story of Thanksgiving, by Ralph and Adeline Linton, 1949.

‘Even before biblical times the ancient people of the Mediterranean Basin held festivals at harvest time in honor of the earth mother. The goddess of the corn (‘corn’ being the European term for any grain; Indian corn (American corn), is called maize), was always one of the most important deities in the hierarchy of the gods, and her child was the young god of vegetation.’17

‘The ancient Semites called the earth mother Astarte…The Phrygians called her Semele…The Minoans had an earth mother for each district. All these local deities were absorbed by the Greeks into the one great goddess, Demeter.’18

‘Besides eating, feasting, etc. the married women practiced special rites. Under the cover of night, the women spent the next day bathing nude in the sea and dancing and playing games on the shore. Then they fasted, sang songs, then feasted, sang, and had general gaiety. All this lasted over a period of several days.’19

‘The Roman harvest festival…was called the Cerelia, after Ceres, the Roman goddess of the corn.’20

‘With the acceptance of Christianity as the official religion of Rome and the conversion of the barbarians who had invaded the crumbling Empire, these pagan rituals were frowned upon and even forbidden by law. However, the peasants clung to them with a tenacity which has made the word ‘pagan’ (originally meaning simply ‘a villager’), a synonym for ‘heathen.’ As late as the sixth century … St. Benedict … found the local peasantry worshiping Apollo in a sacred grove. Even after conversion, old habits and beliefs died hard, and the church was too busy trying to keep the flame of civilization alive to trouble with minor heresies.’21

‘The benevolent earth mother … blended with the equally benevolent mother of Christ. Folk memory of local deities fused with the Christian tales of saints to provide patrons for villages, and the white robed goddess of grain lived on in various guises. To those who live close to the soil, the harvest has an emotional and religious significance … their gratitude finds expression in rites in honor of the being who they feel is most closely related to fruitfulness; a being of warm earth, rather then cold heaven.’22

‘Even today a half pagan belief in the corn mother still survives among the peasant’s in many parts of Europe.’23

‘The Pilgrims undoubtedly brought memories of such English harvest home celebrations with them when they came to the new world. They had also witnessed ‘thanksgiving’ ceremonies during their sojourn in Holland … The Pilgrims themselves would have denied that the Thanksgiving feast in honor of their first harvest in 1621 was evoked by memories of the profane practices of the old world; however, all revolutionaries, political or religious, once their goal is accomplished, turn back to the patterns of the society in which they have been reared, and the Pilgrims, at the time of the first Thanksgiving, were no exception.’24

‘In Peru, the ancient Indians worshiped the ‘Mother of Maize’ and tried every year to persuade her to bring in another good harvest. In Europe, the Austrians also had a ‘Corn Mother’ doll, fashioned from the last sheaf of grain cut in the field and then brought home to the village in the last wagon.’

Organic Gardening and Farming, Nov. 1975, page 132ff, the article entitled, Thanksgiving Day.

Cornucopia

The cornucopia,a horn-shaped container overflowing with fruit, nuts, and vegetables which is typically seen at Thanksgiving in the United States is a Pagan Symbol.

From Wikipedia,
The cornucopia (Latin: Cornu Copiae) is a symbol of food and abundance dating back to the 5th century BC, also referred to as horn of plenty, Horn of Amalthea, and harvest cone.

In Greek mythology, Amalthea was a goat who raised Zeus on her breast milk. When her horn was accidentally broken off by Zeus while playing together, this changed Amalthea into a unicorn with 17 whiskers. The god Zeus, in remorse, gave her back her horn. The horn then had supernatural powers which would give person in possession of it whatever he or she wished for. This gave rise to the legend of the cornucopia. The original depictions were of the goat’s horn filled with fruits and flowers: deities, especially Fortuna, was depicted with the horn of plenty. The cornucopia was also a symbol for a woman’s fertility.

In modern depiction, the cornucopia is typically a hollow, horn-shaped wicker basket typically filled with various kinds of festive fruit and vegetables. In North America, the cornucopia has come to be associated with Thanksgiving and the harvest.

Harvest Queen
A name given to Ceres the Roman goddess of agriculture and crops or to a young woman chosen from among the reapers to whom was given a post of honor at the harvest home.  Demeter is the Greek version of the Egyptian goddess Isis and Roman version of Ceres.

Harvest festivals around the world:

* Mid-Autumn Festival: China
* Chuseok: Korea
* Dongmaeng: Korea
* Bon Festival: Japan
* Dożynki Poland
* Erntedank: Germany & Austria (1st Sunday in October)
* Festa e Grurit (Wheat Festival): A festival that used to mark the end of the harvest of wheat in Communist Albania. No longer observed.
* Freyfaxi (Aug. 1st): marks the beginning of the harvest in Norse paganism. Historically from Iceland, the celebration consists of blót, horse races, martial sports, and other events, often dedicated to the god Freyr.
* Harvest festival: United Kingdom
* Lammas or Lughnasadh (Aug 1): celebration of first harvest/grain harvest in Paganism and Wicca spirituality and by the ancient Celts.
* Mabon (Autumnal Equinox): the second of three recognized harvest sabbats in Paganism and Wicca
* Mhellia: Isle of Man
* Mehregan (October 2): Iran, Ancient Persia
* Annual Harvest Festival of Prosser, Washington, celebrated on the 4th full weekend in September
* Samhain (October 31): the third and final of three recognized harvest sabbats in Paganism and Wicca; celebration of the end of the harvest season and beginning of the Celtic New Year.
* Solung: falls between June and July for nine days. The Adi (also Abor) is a major collective tribe living in the Himalayan hills of Arunachal Pradesh
* Sukkot: Jewish harvest festival lasting eight days in the fall, in which time is spent in tabernacles or booths
* Hasyl toýy:Turkmenistan – the holiday on the last Sunday in November.
* Timoleague: Harvest Festival is held every year in August – Tigh Molaige in Irish
* Ikore: celebrated by the Yoruba tribe of Nigeria
* Khuado Pawi: celebrated by the Chin tribe of India, Burma and recently in the USA and many other parts of the world.

North America

* Duneland Harvest Festival: celebrated the last weekend in September in Porter, Indiana, near Chicago.
* Harvest Festival (United States): celebrated by American Christians on October 31st
* Thanksgiving (United States): the holiday on the fourth Thursday in November.
* Thanksgiving (Canada): the holiday on the second Monday in October.

South Asia

* Bhogali Bihu: (or Magh Bihu) is a harvest festival celebrated in Assam which marks the end of harvesting season in mid-January.
* Lohri: celebrated in North India esp. Punjab
* Nabanna: Bengal region which comprises West Bengal (India) and Bangladesh
* Onam: celebrated by Malayali people in Kerala (India) and other places
* Pongal: celebrated by Tamil people in Tamil Nadu (India) and other places
* Sankranthi or Makar Sankranti: Celebrated in several regions of India including Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh
* Vaisakhi (or Baisakhi): celebrated by Punjabi people in Punjab (India), other parts of North India and elsewhere. The festival falls on the first day of Vaisakh month (usually mid-April), and marks the Punjabi New Year.
* Traditional New Year celebrations in Sri Lanka coincides with the harvest festival in mid-April.
* Dree Festival is a agricultural festival of the Apatanis of Ziro valley in Lower Subansiri District of Arunachal Pradesh, which is celebrated every year from 4th to 7th July.

South Asia

* Flores de Mayo :Flower festival in the Philippines
* Gawai Dayak: Malaysia
* Kaamatan (May 30-31), Sabah in Malaysia
* Maras Taun: Belitung in Indonesia
* Mid-Autumn Festival: Vietnam
* Pahiyas Rice festival in the Philippines

Thanksgiving in the Scriptures

Food is associated with thanksgiving

1Ti 4:4  Because every creature of God is good, and nothing to be thrust away, but having been received with thanksgiving;
1Ti 4:5  for through God’s Word and supplication it is sanctified.

Thanksgiving comes from the Hebrew word Hodu which derives from Yadah.

From the root yad (hand)

Thanksgiving used in the Scriptures

Col 4:2  Steadfastly continue in prayer, watching in it with thanksgiving,
Col 4:3  praying together about us also, that God may open to us a door of the Word, to speak the mystery of Christ, on account of which I also have been bound,
Col 2:6  Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in Him,
Col 2:7  being rooted and being built up in Him, and being confirmed in the faith, even as you were taught, abounding in it with thanksgiving.

Eph 5:1  Then become imitators of God, as beloved children,
Eph 5:2  and walk in love, even as Christ also loved us and gave Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for an odor of a sweet smell.
Eph 5:3  But let not fornication, and all uncleanness, or greediness, be named among you, as is fitting for saints;
Eph 5:4  also baseness, and foolish talking, or joking (the things not becoming), but rather thanksgiving.

2Co 4:15  For all things are for you, that the grace may superabound through the greater number, and may cause the thanksgiving to abound to the glory of God.

Jer 33:11  the voice of joy, and the voice of gladness, the voice of the bridegroom, and the voice of the bride, the voice of those saying, Praise YHWH of Hosts, for YHWH is good, for His mercy endures forever; those who shall bring the sacrifice of thanksgiving into the house of YHWH. For I will bring back the captivity of the land, as at the first, says YHWH.

Jer 30:17  For I will give health back to you, and I will heal you of your wounds, says YHWH, because they called you, Outcast; saying, This is Zion; no one is seeking for her.
Jer 30:18  So says YHWH, Behold I will turn the captivity of Jacob’s tents and will have mercy on his dwelling places. And the city shall be built on her ruin heap; and the fortress shall remain on its own ordinance.
Jer 30:19  And out of them shall come thanksgiving and the voice of those who are merry. And I will multiply them, and they shall not be few. I also will honor them, and they shall not be small.

Isa 51:3  For YHWH comforts Zion. He comforts all her desolations, and He makes her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of YHWH; joy and gladness shall be found in it, thanksgiving and the voice of singing praise.
Isa 51:4  Hear Me, My people; yea, give ear to Me, My nation. For a law shall go out from Me, and My justice I will make rest as light to peoples.
Isa 51:5  My righteousness is near; My salvation went out; and My arms shall judge peoples; coastlands shall wait on Me, and they shall hope on My arm.

Psa 100:1  A Psalm of Thanksgiving. Shout joyfully to YHWH, all the land.
Psa 100:2  Worship YHWH with gladness; come before His face with joyful singing.
Psa 100:3  Know that YHWH, He is God; He has made us, and not we ourselves, His people and the sheep of His pasture.
Psa 100:4  Enter into His gates with thanksgiving, into His courts with praise; be thankful to Him; bless His name.
Psa 100:5  For YHWH is good; His mercy is everlasting, and His faithfulness to generation and generation.

Psa 107:1  Give thanks to YHWH, for He is good; for His mercy endures forever.
Psa 107:2  Let the redeemed of YHWH say so, whom He redeemed from the hand of the foe;
Psa 107:3  and gathered them from the lands; from east and from west; from north and from south.
Psa 107:4  They wandered in the wilderness, in a desert way; they found no city of dwelling;
Psa 107:5  hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them;
Psa 107:6  and they cried to YHWH in their distress; He delivered them from their straits.
Psa 107:7  And He guided them in the right way; to go to a city of dwelling.
Psa 107:8  Let them thank YHWH for His mercy, and His wonders to the sons of man.
Psa 107:9  He satisfies the thirsty soul, and He fills the hungry soul with good.
Psa 107:10  Those who live in the darkness, and in the shadow of death, being prisoners in affliction and iron,
Psa 107:11  because they rebelled against the Words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High;
Psa 107:12  and He humbled their heart by toil; they stumbled, and none were helping;
Psa 107:13  and they cried to YHWH in their distress; He saved them out of their distresses;
Psa 107:14  He brought them out from darkness and the shadow of death; and He broke their bonds apart.
Psa 107:15  Let them thank YHWH for His mercy, and His wonders to the sons of man.
Psa 107:16  For He has broken the gates of bronze; and He cut bars of iron in two.
Psa 107:17  Fools are afflicted from the way of their rebellion, and from their iniquities;
Psa 107:18  their soul hates every food; and they touch the gates of death;
Psa 107:19  and they cried to YHWH in their distress; He saved them from their straits;
Psa 107:20  He sent His Word and healed them; and delivered them from all their pitfalls.
Psa 107:21  Let them thank YHWH for His mercy, and His wonders to the sons of man.
Psa 107:22  And let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and recount His works with rejoicing.
Psa 107:23  They who go down to the sea in ships, who work in the great waters;
Psa 107:24  these see the works of YHWH, and His wonders in the deep.
Psa 107:25  For He speaks, and He raises stormy wind, and makes its waves high;
Psa 107:26  they go up to the heavens; they go down to the depths; their soul is melted because they are in evil;
Psa 107:27  they reel and stagger like a drunken man, and all their wisdom is swallowed up;
Psa 107:28  and they cry to YHWH in their distress, and He saves them out of their straits.
Psa 107:29  He settles the storm to a whisper, so that its waves are still;
Psa 107:30  and they are glad, because they are quiet; and He led them to their desired haven.
Psa 107:31  Let them thank YHWH for His mercy, and His wonders to the sons of mankind;
Psa 107:32  and exalt Him in the congregation of the people; and praise Him in the seat of the elders.
Psa 107:33  He sets rivers to a wilderness, and watersprings to thirsty ground;
Psa 107:34  a fruitful land to a salty desert; because of the wickedness of those who live in it.
Psa 107:35  He puts the wilderness into pools of water; and dry land into water-springs;
Psa 107:36  and He makes the hungry live there, and they may prepare a city of dwelling.
Psa 107:37  And they sow the fields, and plant vineyards, and make fruits of produce.
Psa 107:38  He also blesses them, so that they multiply greatly; and He does not allow their cattle to diminish;
Psa 107:39  but they are diminished and bowed down from coercion, evil and grief.
Psa 107:40  He pours scorn on nobles, and causes them to wander in a desert; there is no path.
Psa 107:41  But He raises the poor up from affliction, and He sets families like a flock.
Psa 107:42  The upright shall see and be glad; and all iniquity shuts its mouth.
Psa 107:43  Whoever is wise and will observe these things, they shall discern the mercies of YHWH.
Psa 50:14  Offer thanksgiving to God, and pay your vows to the Most High.
Psa 50:15  And call on Me in the day of distress, and I will save you; and you shall glorify Me.
Psa 26:7  to cause to hear with the voice of thanksgiving and recount all Your wonderful works.
Psa 105:1  O give thanks to YHWH; call on His name; make His deeds known among the peoples.
Psa 105:2  Sing to Him; sing praises to Him; tell of all His wonders.
Psa 105:3  Glory in His holy name; let the heart of those who seek YHWH rejoice.
Psa 105:4  Seek YHWH and His strength; seek His face without ceasing.
Psa 105:5  Remember His wonders that He has done, His miracles, and the judgments of His mouth,
Psa 105:6  O seed of His servant Abraham; O sons of Jacob, His elect.
Psa 105:7  He is YHWH our God; His judgments are in all the earth;
Psa 105:8  He has remembered His covenant forever; the Word He commanded to a thousand generations;
Psa 105:9  which He cut with Abraham, and His oath to Isaac;
Psa 105:10  and He established it to Jacob for a statute, to Israel for a perpetual covenant;
Psa 105:11  saying, To you I will give the land of Canaan, the portion of your inheritance;
Psa 105:12  when they were a few men of number; very few, and aliens in it.
Psa 105:13  And they went about from nation to nation; from one kingdom to another people.
Psa 105:14  He allowed no man to oppress them; yea, He reproved kings for their sakes;
Psa 105:15  saying, Touch not My anointed; and, Do My prophets no harm.
Psa 105:16  And He called a famine on the land; He broke the whole staff of bread.
Psa 105:17  He sent a man before them, Joseph, being sold for a slave;
Psa 105:18  they hurt his feet with chains; his soul came into iron;
Psa 105:19  until the time His Word came, the Word of YHWH refined him;
Psa 105:20  the king, the ruler of peoples, sent and shook off his links and set him free;
Psa 105:21  he made him lord of his house, and ruler over all he owned;
Psa 105:22  to bind his leaders at his will, and to teach his elders wisdom.
Psa 105:23  Israel also came into Egypt, and Jacob sojourned in the land of Ham.
Psa 105:24  And He increased His people greatly and made them stronger than their enemies.
Psa 105:25  He turned their heart to hate His people, to deal craftily with His servants.
Psa 105:26  He sent His servant Moses and Aaron whom He had chosen.
Psa 105:27  They put things of His signs among them; yea, wonders in the land of Ham.
Psa 105:28  He sent darkness and made it dark; and they did not rebel against His Word.
Psa 105:29  He turned their waters into blood and killed their fish.
Psa 105:30  Their land swarmed with frogs in the rooms of their kings.
Psa 105:31  He spoke, and fly swarms came; gnats in all their borders.
Psa 105:32  He gave hail for their rain, flaming fire in their land.
Psa 105:33  He struck their vines also, and their fig trees; and He broke the trees of their borders.
Psa 105:34  He spoke, and locusts came; and larvae without number;
Psa 105:35  and they ate up all the plants in the land; yea, ate the fruit of their ground.
Psa 105:36  He also struck all the first-born in their land, the firstfruit of all their vigor.
Psa 105:37  And He led them out with silver and gold; and among their tribes, not one was stumbling.
Psa 105:38  Egypt was glad when they went out, for their dread had fallen on them.
Psa 105:39  He spread a cloud for a covering; and fire to give light in the night.
Psa 105:40  He asked, and He brought quail; and satisfied them with the food from the heavens.
Psa 105:41  He opened the rock, and waters gushed out; they went in the dry places like a river.
Psa 105:42  For He remembered His holy Word and His servant Abraham;
Psa 105:43  and He brought His people out with joy; His elect with gladness.
Psa 105:44  And He gave to them the lands of the nations; and they inherited the labor of the peoples;
Psa 105:45  so that they might observe His statutes and keep His laws. Praise YHWH!

Rev 7:12  saying, Amen. Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and strength to our God forever and ever. Amen.

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