THE TRUE MEANING OF EASTER

by Pastor Greg Wilson

As a Bible-believing Christian, I stake my all upon the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Without it I would be, as the apostle notes: "of all men most miserable" (1 Cor. 15:19). I cannot understand why some make claim to Christianity, and yet deny the very cornerstone of the Christian faith; i.e., the literal, bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

For Christ and His resurrection I have everything, and to it, I owe everything. But for the pagan festival of Easter, I have nothing but contempt! 

One need not be a scholar or spend countless hours in research to ascertain that this holiday is a thoroughly pagan ritual. It has no connection to Biblical Christianity. A true child of God ought not observe it in any positive way. Until this century, no Baptist, and many protestants would have nothing to do with it. Baptists, and some protestants were persecuted for their refusal to join in its festivities.

Under the definition for Easter in Webster's Dictionary (College Edition) one finds: "originally the name of pagan vernal festival . . . Eastre, dawn goddess." Further reading in an encyclopedia, or most books on the holidays will identify this Eastre with the pagan goddess known variously as Eostre, Ishtar, Semeramis, and Astarte. This is the same Babylonian "Queen of Heaven," whose worship is condemned in the Word of God (see Jeremiah Chapters 7 and 44).

The trappings of the modern Easter, and its associated days are all pagan in origin. Lent is not found in the Bible as a Christian holiday. It is rather borrowed from the 40 days of mourning for Tammuz, the lover/ husband/son of Astarte. God's Word condemns its observance in Ezekiel 8:14. 

There is absolutely no Biblical authority for such days as Ash Wednesday, Palm Sunday, or Maundy Thursday. "Good Friday" is the most bizarre of them all. Any grade school child can see that the Lord could not have died and been buried late Friday, spent three days and three nights in the tomb (Matt. 12:40) and risen again Sunday morning! 

The word Easter is mentioned but once in the Authorized (KJV) Version of Scripture (Acts 12:4). There it is being observed by the pagan King Herod not by any Christian. 

Some who know the pagan origin of Easter seek to justify its observance by calling it "Resurrection Sunday" rather than by its proper heathen name. This, however, only succeeds in dishonoring all the other Sundays of the year.

Truthfully, for the Christian, every Sunday should be resurrection Sunday! The impact of the resurrection alone can adequately explain why the disciples, who had observed a Saturday Sabbath all their lives, began meeting for worship on the First Day of the week, as we see them doing in Scripture.

Dear Christian, heed God's admonition found in Jeremiah 10:2: "Learn not the way of the heathen . . ."