Are We Agreeing With Pagan Way, When We Celebrate Valentines Day?
A : We must understand that we are in the world and not of the world. In other words, when somebody says to you, "Happy Valentines Day!", we need not say, "Don't say it to me because I do not celebrate it," but we can wish them back and give them the right reasons why we celebrate it. Or else we have to go out of this world. Jesus' prayer done before two thousand years is as powerful enough as it was then to keep us from the evil pollution of the world as we follow him and proclaim the gospel of salvation that saves all sinners from sin and death (John 17:15-16). Whether it is a pagan festival or not, it doesn't matter to us, all that matter to us is, take whatever is good and throw away the evil that accompanies it. Earthly man made tradition should be used as a point of contact to touch the world's ways of thinking and thus imparting to them the precious gospel of Jesus Christ that saves us all. We should make every effort to share the gospel through relating to what the unbelievers believe to be right and yet not agreeing to things that are against the word of God.
For example, Apostle Paul says that if a Pagan supplies some food and says that it was offered to idol, do not eat it for their conscience sake, so that the unbelievers might know that we do not eat it just because it was offered to idol. Paul said this so that we might not be the cause for the defilement of the mind of idolaters who might think that it is OK to eat food that is offered to idols and thus worship idols, because we Christians who follow the true God of the Bible also eat along with them (1 Cor 8:4-7). Make a difference by relating to unbelievers and thus imparting the gospel to them, this is why Paul says to eat the food offered to you without asking questions (1 Cor 10:25, 27). So the bottom line is, do whatever you can to impart the gospel to the unbelievers, lukewarm so called religious people and also to those who are Christians for namesake. No festival whether pagan or Biblical can commend us to God, but we should be careful not to become a stumbling block to the brethren by taking our liberty to the extreme (1 Cor 8:8-13). Just because we relate with the unbelievers for imparting the Gospel, this act of God's mercy should never be considered by any wrongly as though agreeing with pagan customs. Because a true Christian is at liberty and not under any rule except the law of the Spirit of life, we should not again get yoked with the law of celebrating the right festival (2 Cor 3:17; Rom 8:2; Gal 5:1-2; Col 2:16-23). Jesus moved with sinners, ate with them and drank with them (Matt 11:19), yet He did not sin because He was ruled by the kingdom dynamics of the law of the Spirit of life which gives liberty to live with God's strength all the time (1 Peter 2:22; Rom 8:2). USE ALL MEANS AND WIN A SOUL FOR CHRIST!
When the Bible says, "...Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God." (Rom 12:2), it really means, 'Do not think as the world thinks and lives, their value system is based on material prosperity, physical pleasure and exercising lordship power over others. But we ought to be changed by the spiritual values and thinking of God's kingdom which values God above self and earthly pleasure.'
Kingdom transformation comes when we say to God, "Thy kingdom come and thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." (Matt 6:10). This is the transformational kingdom thinking that will make us live effectively and fullfill God's purpose. King David in the Bible had such transformational kingdom thinking and this God was able to testify of about him saying, “For David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell asleep, was buried with his fathers..." (Acts 13:36). The kingdom transformational thinking helps us serve God and fullfill His purpose to the fullest.
It is not the action or traditions of the worldly people that is wrong, but their thinking behind it in their heart that nullifies the word of God and makes it ineffective (Mark 7:13-16). So celebrating Valentine's day or any other festivals is in itself is neighther good nor bad, but the worldly thinking that accompanies it and corrupts the heart of man by making him think that it can satisfy them without God and thus making them to walk in their own way is what makes them ungodly.
So let us learn to be spiritual and not religious enough to live a ineffective life without fullfilling God's purpose for us on earth. God desires that no unbeliever should be lost (1 Tim 2:4), and has commanded us all to preach, share and live the gospel before the unbelievers (Mark 16:15-18; Matt 28:18-20). Unless we become all things to all men, the gospel cannot be truly preached to all people alike to save them. So let us relate with all the people of the world by all means and save some who are appointed by God and become a partaker of the eternal harvest of souls along with all the saints (Acts 13:48; 18:10; 1 Cor 9:22-23).
Much Blessings..... :)
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