1S20-14: Why Christmas And Easter Are NOT Holy Holidays…And Never Will Be

Yesterday, I left you with three quiz questions about the ROSH CHODESH dinner banquet being held at King Saul’s court.

Let’s go ahead and answer those questions now.

QUIZ QUESTION ONE:

When Saul assumed David must have been ritually unclean, what is the Hebrew word used to describe that state?

ANSWER:

The word is TAMEI or טמא.

It means “impure” or “unclean”.

The use of this term isn’t restricted to the physical realm…

Like talking about washing our hands before a meal…

Or avoiding TAMEI foods like pork and shrimp. 

It also refers to spiritual uncleanliness or being unholy on the inside.

Yeshua talked about this when he chewed out the Pharisees.

“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence. Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.”-Matthew 23:25-29

When we understand TAMEI, we learn to think about how our actions affect not just our bodies but also our hearts.

As Messiah said, it’s making sure we’re clean on the inside as well as the outside.

“But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Messiah Yeshua, his son, cleanses us from all impurity.“-1 John 1:7

QUIZ QUESTION TWO

What is the Hebrew term used to refer to the opposite state of being ritually unclean?

ANSWER

So this would be the opposite of TAMEI.

The word is TAHOR or טָהוֹר.

It means “clean” or “pure”.

For example, when David says to the Lord…

“Create for me a clean heart,
Oh God and renew a right spirit
within me.”
Psalm 51:10

The phrase “clean heart” is LEV TAHOR in Hebrew.

Or in the Book of Genesis, Noah was told…

^“Of every clean animal you are to take seven couples, and of the animals that are not clean, one couple.”

The Hebrew word for “clean” is TAHOR, and the term for “not clean” is TAMEI.

QUIZ QUESTION THREE

How are Saul’s thoughts evidence of just how distorted the practice of the Torah commandments had become at this time in Israel?

ANSWER

I’ve already touched on this but Saul considering this ROSH CHODESH meal to be “holy” and then assuming that’s why David couldn’t attend because he was unclean reflects Torah ignorance on a couple of points.

FIRST, it is the priesthood that must officiate over this meal, NOT the king.

SECOND, the sacred meal is for the priests, and must be eaten in the “presence of the Lord”.

That’s another quiz question for you.

Do you what know what “in the presence of the Lord” means?

It means “at the sanctuary.”

Onward.

THIRD, unless a portion of the meat being served was properly sacrificed to Adonai on the altar, there ain’t no authority that can call this Rosh Chodesh banquet being held at King Saul’s court “holy”.

Ya feel me?

Don’t get me wrong…

There isn’t a law against lay folks holding some kind of dinner to celebrate Rosh Chodesh…

But to call it “holy” is Chutzpah above the par!

In Numbers 28 where it talks about Rosh Chodesh, there is no thought about the Rosh Chodesh being some kind of special dinner eaten by secular authorities.

So again, what we have here is a manmade tradition where whether one is ritually clean or not ain’t even relevant.

This dovetails nicely into today’s takeaway.

It basically boils down to this.

Just because something is forbidden by God does NOT mean that what is allowed is holy.

Ya feel me?

When you go to a Christian church, you see a so-called holy altar, right?

Well, news flash homies, that altar ain’t holy.

And neither is Christmas or Easter holy.

Heck, the word “Easter” comes from ISHTAR which is the name of a fertility deity for crying out loud!

Or how about all those wars fought in God’s Name against our nation’s enemies?

Sure, our enemies may epitomize the worst of evil mankind…

But our wars against them are NOT holy wars.

Bottom line, if want to know what is holy from God’s perspective, you have to go to His Torah.

That is the ONLY place where you will find what is holy and what is not holy.

There can be no compromise on this.

No human being has the authority to add or subtract from God’s Word.

I don’t care if you’re a pastor or preacher, or have a string of seminary degrees hanging on your study wall.

Bottom line, what we have here in 1st Samuel Chapter 20 is the King of Israel trying to establish holiness upon his own authority.

That dog ain’t gonna hunt.