The Christian Liberty to Enjoy Pork During the Holidays But Beware of Overindulging in It

Photo by Cleo Vergara on Pexels.com

Even under the New Testament, I still have the urge to avoid pork as much as possible. Sure, God gave Peter the vision in Acts 10:9-16. God even told Peter in verse 15 saying that what God has made clean, call it not as common. That means pork has been allowed. I’ve been to several Christian church anniversaries and dinners. One of the most faithful Christians I know (and he’s in Heaven now with the LORD) sold roasted pork or lechon. I personally try to avoid the temptation of lechon. Maybe, my excuse would be, “I’m trying to lose weight.” In Peter’s case, his limited human senses may have given disbelief when he heard Jesus tell him to kill the unclean animals. Certainly, I’m still against eating other wild meat such as dogs, cats, monkeys, etc. Meanwhile, for some reason, there hasn’t been a law to outlaw pork despite the health risks associated with it.

Hezekiah’s Religious Reforms for Judah

I believe that writing about good King Hezekiah will not be an easy task. There’s also the battle with Sennacherib, which I believe should be written as a separate entry. Like every king of Judah, I have to bounce back between 2 Kings and 2 Chronicles. His history can be found in 2 Kings 18-20 and 2 Chronicles 29-32. 2 Chronicles has a very extensive narrative of the reforms. It would probably mean trying to review Leviticus and Deuteronomy. Fortunately, it’s the New Testament now or pastors will have to wear the priestly attire. I doubt it’d be easy to make a miter. I can’t imagine attending a Sunday service and the pastor must wear the prescribed attire of the Old Testament priest. 1 Peter 2:9 talks about a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a peculiar people as every believer now has equal access to God. I really found reading Hezekiah’s reforms to be, “Can I really fulfill this?” Hezekiah did all of that by God’s grace.

Jesus’ Human Incarnation and His Role as the Last Adam

Even if not all the 12 days of Christmas is a holiday–some people still don’t keep their decorations until January 6 or the Epiphany. It’s said Christmas isn’t over until all 12 days are fulfilled. Sure, people may go back to work but people greet each other “Merry Christmas” even when the Christmas feast is over. Some people may only still greet each other “Merry Christmas” until December 30 as December 31 is New Year’s Eve. The Epiphany commemorates when the wise men (I usually believe it’s three wise men because of the three types of gits) came to the child Jesus. I should’ve written this yesterday as it was Charles H. Spurgeon’s morning devotional yesterday. The key verse is 1 Corinthians 15:45 which says:

Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being.”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. (ESV)

The Total Depravity of Humanity Seen in Christmas Foolishness

It’s very easy to say that because it’s Christmas, there must be nothing but good vibes. I feel the need to address Christmas season foolishness. Since Christmas is celebrated as a 12-day advent from the birth of Jesus to the visit of the Magi, I think I’ll write some Christmas posts until January 6. It was Christmas Eve yesterday and it’s Christmas Day today. I could imagine the foolishness that happens a lot during the Christmas season. How much more when it’s Christmas Eve and New Year’s Eve? Usually, only December 24-25 and January 31-January 1 are declared non-working holidays. The banks will be open tomorrow and they’ll be closed again by January 31 (while Filipinos get an extra holiday on January 30). I could think about how Christmas season foolishness addresses this one thing–the total depravity of man.

Christmas Season Disasters Tend to be Worse Because of People’s Carefree Attitude on that Particular Time

People tend to have that carefree attitude during Christmas. Who isn’t really excited about the Christmas bonus and 13th-month pay? Who isn’t excited about the gifts and the celebration? In the case of the Philippines, it’s the longest Christmas in the world. I really hate the toxic positivity associated with Christmas as well. “Only good vibes because it’s Christmas!” tends to be the motto of toxic positive people. People get careless during Christmas never mind that the 13th-month pay and Christmas bonus are open invitations to robbers. People tend not to redeem their time by budgeting and spending before the peak of December. Unsurprisingly, some people do their Christmas shopping on December 24 when they could’ve done it on December 1 or November. They could’ve started planning during the -ber months. Instead, that carefree attitude and expecting “Christmas miracles” can help aggravate disasters on Christmas more than any time of the year.

The Three Types of Gifts by the Wise Men to the Lord Jesus

With non-nativity posts written for the past few days, I decided to write this entry on what might be best reserved for the Feast of the Epiphany. Just a note that the Lord Jesus was already referred to as a young child and no longer an infant. The Nativity Set (called belen in Filipino) is so erroneous. The wise men moved into a house. It’s assumed to be three wise men because of the three types of gifts. There had to be some significance to the three types of gifts. As gifts have been frequently associated with Christmas, I think it might be a good thing to write why the three wise men gave gifts to the infant Jesus sometime later.

The Unjust Judge and the Persistent Widow

Luke 18’s opening story is the story of the unjust judge and the persistent widow. Luke 18:1-8 details the story of a man who neither feared God nor cared for the people. What is the symbol of the unjust judge? The symbol is someone who’s in contrast to God. There are people in the world who are like this judge. Personally, I can feel like I want to beat up such people. How can such people exist? The answer is a result of sinfulness. The judge would be considered cursed by Deuteronomy 27:19. The widow was someone in need of help. The judge was really one wicked man. I could assume that he accepted bribes. Since the widow didn’t have any money, she was naturally neglected.