>>4461911 pb

i think the author was Abraham Heschel who stated that we are thoughts in the mind of God to which he has given free will.

Another way to see it comes from scripture. Before God created anything, he was the only reality. He created the universe within himself, since there is no container larger than God. When he created , he opened a void within himself. Technically this would look like a gazillion voids like discontinuities in a crystal.

He organized those voids into the universe. Now we are like fish in water or birds in the air. We cannot see God because we are in him. Though we can swim or fly according to our own will, the currents and winds guide us where God would have us.

>>4463025

>>4463192

Sorry guys. The magi did not rely on astrology to find Jesus nor follow a point of light or literal star. They saw the ancient prophecy (east = ancient) "a Star will rise out of Jacob" . They were familiar with it from when they held Israel captive.

They went to Herod to ask where the new king was to be born. They did not go to Bethlehem, but to Jerusalem. Herod's wise men consulted the prophecies and related that he would be born in Bethlehem.

The went to Bethlehem and "they rejoiced when they saw the star". Jesus was the prophesied star from Jacob.

Since Jesus was the Prince of Peace, they knew that Herod wasn't. The dream of an angel confirmed to them that they could not trust Herod.

Now in the parables the 'seed' is the word of God. But Jesus is the Word of God, so he was the seed. Grinding and baking the seed into bread is a symbol of his tribulation. At the last supper he said the bread represented his body given on the cross.

So now we have the baby bread (seed which will be made into bread) lying in a feeding trough with grass surrounded by sheep.

It is the same imagery we have of his followers (his sheep) eating his body, as we have in the communion bread.

Frankincense is a sweet savor like the smole of a burnt offering, and myrrh is used to wrap dead bodies.

By celebrating his birth, we are celebrating his purpose from the beginning to die for us. We are looking forward to Easter.

If your celebration is pagan… don't do it.

But to me, the tree symbolizes the cross. Though it was cut down, it is still green. We bring it in our house as an invitation for Christ to come into out hearts and homes. The white lights represent his holiness even as we cast our sin upon him; the red balls (though our sin be as scarlet), our earthly concerns represented by toys and trinkets which are memories of family, The wreathes represent the entanglement of Isaac's ram in the thicket (the cares of the world "he cared for the world") because God so loved the world. The thorns are gone, because in the final moments, though he was led to the cross by the prophecy and will of God, he laid down his own life freely.

You are a pagan if you think God judges by anything other than the heart.