The Season of Easter: Meat Offered to Idols

“some are uncomfortable when it comes  to eating meat offered to idols” 1Cor:8:7-8

I recently had a conversation with a person who I consider to be a friend and of whom I think very well of. This friend of mine had for several years been a member of one of the Churches which I had pastored and had some time ago moved to a different part of our country.

This friend told me that they had stopped attending the Church where they had been going due to the fact that on Easter Sunday, after the Church service,  Easter Eggs had been passed out to the children in the congregation.

This friend had been taught, in the past, that Easter Eggs were of pagan origin and that there was no connection between pagan Easter Eggs and the glorious resurrection of our Lord Jesus and that this giving out of Easter Eggs had put this person off and made them uncomfortable and so they had stayed away from attending Church. This self-imposed exile was getting a little lonely for they had long been faithful and active over the many years in and of the life of the Church and truly missed the fellowship with other believers.

The Pastor Calls

But recently, the pastor of that particular congregation called and to see how my friend of was doing, this friend of mine, then explained to that pastor the reason behind their absence from Church. (which I was very glad of , for I know that over the years there have members of varies Churches which I have served who simply vanished and I was never able to find out as to why or what ever became of them.)

The pastor listened to my friends objections to the uses of Easter Eggs in the Church and reason for not being at church and then the pastor, in response, gave a rather short explanation which left this friend of mine unconvinced, however, this friend of mine did agree to allow the pastor to come by their home and have a face-to-face conversation and hear their objections out and see if they could, together, come to a resolution which answered my friend’s problem with Easter Eggs.

Easter eggs was the main focus of our conversation for it was the eggs which my friend was uncomfortable with, but such things as bunnies and baskets and the other rudiments of the Easter observance were  addressed and by extension Christmas and it’s seasonal trappings such as  trees, reindeer, elves and even Santa too were eluded to, but again, they were not the focus. But I believe what I have written will answer such concerns.   

My Friend Calls

This friend of mine then called me on the telephone and asked my thoughts about how they felt about Easter Eggs being pagan and should not be use  them within the Church as part of the Easter observance. I listened sympathetically to their problem. I was very glad that my friend mentioned to me that the Church pastor had scheduled time to stop by their home and talk face-to-face. I told my friend that I understood that it was their true desire to be faithful to God and live as a Christian ought to.

I began by giving and explanation which I do hope did, and will help, the problem with the Easter Eggs and any others trappings associated with Easter or any Christian observance.

Nothing New Under the Sun

Frist, understand this that it is written in the Holy Word of God that “there is nothing new under the sun” Eccl: 19c, which means, every things is something old repackaged. Even God has in the past repackaged, or better said redeemed things and used them for his worship and glory and purposes, after all, God is the Creator of all things and has a prior claim on everything regardless of how it may have been missed used by humanity.

Many pagan nations did use many items in the worship of their gods. Some of the items which pagans used in their worship were arks into which their priests would place “sacred objects”, and these arks would be carried by the pagan priests to and through their temples. 

God himself had the people of Israel construct the Ark of the Covenant into which Scripture tells us was placed a pot of manna, Aaron’s budding rod and the fragments of the Ten Commandments which was the very heart of the Old Covenant itself.  Heb: 9:4, Ex: 16:32-34, Num: 17:10

The pagans employed the use of incense in worship and during prayer times of and to their gods. God as well, instructed the priest of Israel to wave censers filled with burning incense to wave before him and upon the Alter of Incense in the Sanctuary within the Wilderness Tabernacle and Temple at Jerusalem.  Ex: 30:1-38

There are many examples we could draw from, but for the sake of brevity I will mention only but one more. Many pagan peoples kept a harvest festival in the Autumn of the year. The Canaanite peoples kept a weeklong festival in which they would go into their fields and construct booths and stay in the booths and celebrate the harvest and worship their gods. The Lord God instructed the people of Israel to do the same, giving the festival the name the Feast of Tabernacles or Sukkot. Ex: 34:22, Lev: 23:40-43

Things Added 

Even the people of Israel themselves developed observances and practices and traditions and customs associated with the events ,and life,  of the nation of Israel which commemorated the Lord God’s saving acts in their history.

We see this in the Hanukkah Festival which looks back to the preservation of the life of Israel and the long burning oil of the scared lamps in the Temple of God during the time of the Maccabees and the Rededication of the Temple of God after its desecration. 

Even Jesus observed this festival at Jerusalem which is held in the Winter season called the Feast of Dedication.  Jhn: 10:22

The Jewish people also observe the Feast of Purim that is a reminder of God’s deliverance of the Jewish people from the plot of the wicked court advisor Haman who tricked King Artaxerxes into actions which would have killed off the Jewish people within his Kingdom. This deliverance was enacted through Queen Esther, who she herself was Jewish. The account is found in the Old Testament book which carries her name. Est: 9:22

Interestingly the name Esther is actually associated with the name of the Babylonian goddess Ishtar. Should we remove this Book from the pages of Scriptures in light of this pagan association?

God never condemned nor instructed the people of Israel to revoke any of these practice nor does any New Testament writer precluded them as well.

What About Christians Now?

The truth is, that in the New Testament nor under the New Covenant there are no God ordained observances, nor are there a list of plainly list probations which are enjoined upon believers of the Lord Jesus Christ in regard to his proper worship; only that we should gather together and in so doing to share the Lord’s Supper , but not a set days or times as in the Old Covenant liturgy which was built around the nation of Israel’s life and their relationship with God.  

This reality of the Bible’s silences seems to imply that there are things which our God has left to us for us to arrive at through the guidance of the Holy Spirit and  come to make a determination of.   

St. Paul does tell us. 

“let no one judge in regard to what you eat or drink or in regard to a Holy Day or a Sabbath”Col:2:16

Which Holy Day(s) is or are St. Paul addressing? The Apostle does not elaborate in this verse, but in the next verse he gives some indication, stating that that these things are only:

 “shadows of  The body which belong to Christ”(17). 

This would seem to position the question around the possible observance of the Old Covenant Holy Days which some early Christians were being taught were still enjoined upon them and that the Holy Days in question were the self-same which did look ahead to the coming of our Lord Jesus.

The point St. Paul is making is that these are “only shadows” and that Jesus is the fulfilled reality, but , if some are, by the sake of conscience led to keep them , then that is between they and God, and others who do not keep them  should not  succumb to a sense of judgement imposed on them by others.

The Whole Word Redeemed 

God is the Creator of all things in the world.  He, as God, has a prior claim upon everything and as such is the owner of everything within and without the material universe and upon the Earth on which we live. And as being God, he entered this universe, and not just a part of it, but within it and took on the properties of this universe, through the incarnation in the person of Jesus.    

Part of the saving work which we see manifested in the person of Jesus, God Holy Son, is that ,in his very self, Jesus has redeemed all things to God. St. Paul gives us the scope of this divine work of redemption, upon the whole of creation, by and through Jesus.

“And through Jesus, God has reconciled all things back to himself, whether things upon the Earth or whether things in Heaven, by making peace through Jesus’ blood shed on the cross” Col: 1:20

St. Paul carries this same idea of the redemption of “all things” back to God in Christ in his Epistle to the Church at Corinth Greece. 

“God, in Christ, has reconciled the world to himself” 2Cor:5:18a

In each of the Scripture the Greek grammar, words and structure and implication tells us that nothing has been left out being redeemed or reconciled back to God , that everything  within and without the universe anything seen or unseen,  has been brought back into God’s saving purpose with a focus upon each and all of us. This means, that God, if it be his will, can uses anything for his purpose, including days, items and even Easter Eggs can speak of the new life sured us in and by Jesus'  resurrection.

The Meaning of Easter

Some sincere Christians, who are our brethren in the Lord, have held the misconception that the name Easter is derived from the goddess Ishtar or Asherah . This is simply not true. The word Easter is not a pronoun, nor has it ever been. It is not a name and never was, at least not commonly used.

Easter is a reference to a period of time, specially a time of the day, the time of early morning. The word Easter is reference to the time of the rising sun just as the sun is emerging from the horizon, east being the Earthly direction in which the sun arises. It is possible that Easter is from the Germanic word eostarun which means “the dawn”.

Easter was the time of day when the resurrection of Jesus was confirmed to be a reality, but we are told that the resurrection actually occurred in the pre-dawn while still dark.

St. John in the twentieth chapter of his Gospel tells us that a group of woman went to the Tomb of Jesus while it was “still dark” shortly before the Easter, the dawn , it was in the dawning light of a new day, that early morning, in which the truth was revealed, Jesus has risen from the dead.

Meat Offered to Idols 

In the cities of the Greeks, it was a common practice to reuse portions of meat which had been used in the worship of the gods. Animals would be taken by pagan priest and under prayer would be slaughtered then the pagan priest offered the meat to the idols and placed upon the alter representing the gods.

After this use of the meat in the worship of the gods, it would then be taken and resold in the city market place for consumption. 

Some Christians in St. Paul’s day raised the question as to whether this practice of buying and eating the meat offered to idols should be continued by Christians.  After all it was used in pagan worship. Some were uncomfortable with the notion and it bothered their conscience and sensibilities and could not do it in good faith, and felt it should be avoided by believers. 

It does tells us in the word of God that. 

“whatever does not precede from faith is sin:” Rm:14:23 

That means if a follower of Jesus is uncomfortable with something they personally should avoid it until such a time they can in clear consciences in faith do or not do somethings. This means that it is matter of personal choice and between the Christian and God, none should judge one way or the other.

St. Paul address this to the Corinthians. In 1Corithians:8 the Apostle tells them, and we all, that when meat or food  is offered to the idols that the idols has no power to alter or changes the meats, or food’s properties as he says “the idol is nothing”(4). It is a lifeless object and whatever power may have been behind it, is already defeated by our Lord Jesus and is of no fear to the Christian. 

Now St. Paul acknowledges that this may not be fully understood by all believers, and that some may have personal reservation about eating such  “meat offered to idols”.

“some are uncomfortable when comes to eating meat offered to idols” (7-8)

St. Paul is saying that if the practice bothers their conscience due to the fact that the meat had been used in pagan worship in the past, they should then avoid it and none should judge them for it and use their liberty to eat of it as a stumbling block or a point of contention between fellow Christians.

What I am saying is this, if  of something, such as eggs, baskets, bunnies or reindeer, trees and or even Santa or anything else, was in times past , used in some way in  the worship of pagan gods it is like the “meat offered to idols” . 

If it is uncomfortable and pains the conscience of a believer then they should avoid it, however, if it others can use such things, holiday trappings, then they have the freedom to do so, but each should be careful not to judge the other as to as St. Paul admonishes us “to eat or not eat” . 

When we grasp the magnitude of the savaging work of our Lord and the power of his redemption over and in all creation and that he can use even “pagan” trappings for his divine work upon the Earth through Jesus. 

When we come to see that our God is bigger than Easter eggs, baskets, bunnies, trees, colored lights, reindeer or anything else we can be at peace with God and one another for our “God has in Christ reconciled the world unto himself”.

This is but a very brief explination , I hope that it will give any peace, such as my friend, who have found many things uncomfortbule. 

We can be a peace, with all ,even “meat offered to idols”.

Benediction: May we each and all ever praise our God who in the person of his Holy Son has redeemed all things back to himself for his purposes, today, tomorrow and forevermore. Amen.

Rev. Todd Crouch, Pastor   

The Fountain of life Church a Congregation of Grace Communion 2101 Old National Pike.  Washington, Pennsylvania, 15301   

  www.gcfountainoflife.org

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