Nature worship & YOU?

Nature Worship ~ How does it affect [ YOU ] ? 1 Corinthians Chapter 10

17 For we [being] many are one bread, [and] one body: for we are all partakers of that one bread.

18 Behold Israel after the flesh: are not they which eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar?

19 What say I then? that the idol is any thing, or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is any thing?

20 But I [say], that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils.

1 Corinthians 2:14

But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.

Deify:

de·i·fy ˈdēəˌfī /verb gerund or present participle: deifying worship, regard, or treat (someone or something) as a god."she was deified by the early Romans as a fertility goddess"worship, revere, venerate, reverence, hold sacred; immortalize"she was deified by the early Romans"idolize, lionize, extol, hero-worship;idealize, glorify, aggrandize, overpraise, put on a pedestal"he was deified by the press" In ancient Greece, the sun was called Helios. Our Sun is a middle-sized yellow star which scientists have named Sol, after the ancient Roman name. This is why our system of " planets " is called the Solar System.

Real fast, let’s define the word: “Planet.”

plan·et

‘Middle English: from Old French planete, from late Latin planeta, planetes, from Greek planētēs ‘wanderer, planet,’ from planan wander. from Old English wandrian (“to wander, roam, fly around, hover; change; stray, err”), from Proto-Germanic *wandrōną

(“to wander”)

{ Frowardly, perhaps? } froward, fraward "turned against, perverse, disobedient; peevish, petulant; adverse, difficult

I digress, slightly...

Nature worship is often considered the primitive source of modern religious beliefs and can be found in theism, panentheism, pantheism,deism, polytheism, animism, totemism, shamanism, paganism. There is an array of groups and beliefs that fall under earth religion, such aspaganism, which is a polytheistic, nature based religion; animism, which is the worldview that all living entities (plants, animals, and humans) possess a spirit;Wicca, who hold the concept of an earth mother goddess as well as practice … 1 Corinthians 15:39 teaches that the physical substance of all flesh differs in the species created by God: All flesh is not the same flesh, but there is one flesh of men, and another flesh of beasts, and another flesh of birds, and another of fish. This would indicate that there could also be a difference between the life man has versus the life of animals and plants. This concept is verified in the creation account in Genesis. In chapter 1, God created animals and plants to be “living” creatures. The Hebrew for this life is the word “chay" which signifies “raw life.” In Genesis 1:26-27 the life man receives is patterned after God: Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them. In Genesis 2:7, we are told that the difference is the “breath of life.” Then the LORD God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being. The Hebrew word describing man’s life is not “chay” but “chay nephesh” Hence we conclude that there is a difference in the kind of life lived by mankind versus the kind of life lived by { animals and plants. } Hebrews Chapter 2

4 God also bearing [them] witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

5 For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak.

6 But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him?

7 Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands: { “WE” are made in HIS, that is: GOD’S Image.} Which makes us quite unique in that respect. There is another being that was / is unique in some respect(s): satan. The shining one.

When Adam was created, he was, and is, unique. This apparently didn’t sir well with the shining one, aka, the iniquitous covering cherub. He has been on a quest to destroy us ever since ! Hence, all of the confusion in the world is a result of Dr. Chaos,

Hence ~ False doctrine, false deities, false religions, which incedently - if you check the etymology of the word ‘’ religion ‘’ it basically means: to bind life under monastic vows. ( Didn’t JESUS ‘’break’’ those chains of bondage? ) YES, is the answer definitively.

This difference is determined by that part created in God’s image. Since God is an eternal being, reason states that man is an eternal being. By observation, we know the human body is not eternal and, like all physical things, it ages, dies, and decomposes. Hence, there must be something else about human life that is eternal which shall never cease to exist. We have always referred to this as the “soul.” However, this concept is a bit complicated. There are two words used in the Bible, especially the New Testament, which refer to this concept. One is “psuche” translated “soul” and the other is “pneuma” translated “spirit.” Occasionally “pneuma” is translated “breath.” This is why we call fluid in the lungs “pneumonia” as it affects our ability to breathe.

This concept of “breathing” is shared with plant and animal life. Animals take in oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide. They require gaseous oxygen to live. Plants take in carbon dioxide and exhale oxygen. While gaseous carbon dioxide is preferable, they can survive in a dormant state while immersed in water. In Genesis 6:17 God destroyed all animal life: "Behold, I, even I am bringing the flood of water upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is on the earth shall perish." We are told in Genesis 7:15 that “all flesh in which was the breath of life” entered the ark with Noah. Plant life was not included. This shows us the basic difference between plant and animal life and contributes some to the understanding about the soul.

However, there remains a difference between this shared form of life with animals and the life of human beings. Consider the Apostle Paul’s statement in 1 Thessalonians 5:23, “Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you entirely; and may your spirit and soul and body be preserved complete, without blame at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.” Here he tells us that in addition to the physical body there is also a “spirit” (pneuma) and a “soul” (psuche). Throughout the Bible, we are constantly reminded that man consists of two things: a material substance (the body) and an immaterial substance (the soul). Perhaps the best known example of this concept is in Matthew 10:28, "Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." 1 Corinthians 5:3 and 3 John 2 also indicate this dual nature. Yet the part we refer to as the soul is indeed two things also – the pneuma and the psuche. These are so closely tied together in the human being as to be indistinguishable from each other. That there is indeed a difference between the psuche and the pneuma is understood from Hebrews 4:12 where we are taught that the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul (psuche) and spirit (pneuma), of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

**Earth is the only planet that wasn't named after a Greek or Roman god or goddess. ** Animal worship, nature worship, paganism, pantheism -- Is in effect: IDOLATRY. Psalms Chapter 135

15 The idols of the heathen [are] silver and gold, the work of men's hands.

16 They have mouths, but they speak not; eyes have they, but they see not;

17 They have ears, but they hear not; neither is there [any] breath in their mouths.

18 They that make them are like unto them: [so is] every one that trusteth in them And this idolatry, and idols by any means is forbidden by GOD ! grav·en im·age (s)

noun

a carved idol or representation of a god used as an object of worship.

B'Tselem. ... B'Tselem in Hebrew literally means "in the image of," and is also used as a synonym for human dignity. The word is taken from Genesis 1:27 "And God created humans in his image. The phrase “graven image” comes from the King James Version and is first found in Exodus 20:4 in the second of the Ten Commandments. The Hebrew word translated “graven image” means literally “an idol.” A graven image is an image carved out of stone, wood, or metal. It could be a statue of a person or animal, or a relief carving in a wall or pole. It is differentiated from a molten image, which is melted metal poured into a cast. Abstract Asherah poles, carved wooden Ba’als covered in gold leaf, and etchings of gods accompanying Egyptian hieroglyphics are all graven images. SO - If we are created in HIS image ( GOD ), ( and we are ) is it any small wonder why this action of idolatry becomes such an enormous slap in the face to GOD??

Job 12:10

In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the breath of all

mankind.

Psalms 33:6

By the word of the LORD were the heavens made; and all the host of

them by the breath of his mouth.

El Shaddai, GOD ALMIGHTY [ IS ] the living GOD !!!

This idolatry business represents something that is life-less. Breath-less. Most assuredly, something: SOULLESS. We haveGOD'S breath in us. We have GOD'S life in us. Or at least the Life HE gave us...! Not some animal. Not some molten image, or carved figure. Even still- this become ever increasingly dangerous when you realize exactly how many things in fact

ARE a form of Idol Worship. Anything put 1st, or before GOD, or above GOD is blasphemous & idolatry !

The progression of idolatry in a pagan religion generally starts with the acknowledgement of a power that controls natural forces. The presence of the force is then thought to indwell an object, like a stone, or a place, like a mountain. The next step is altering a naturally occurring object, like a standing stone, a deliberately planted tree, or a carved Asherah pole and asking the force to indwell it. When the idolatrous culture has had time to contemplate the personality of the god, they then make corresponding physical images—a statue that looks like a woman or a relief carving that looks like an animal. Graven images can be either of the last two steps.

The spiritual progression is similar. People start with wanting something (Ephesians 5:5; Colossians 3:5), often children or prosperity or good crops. They observe the circumstances (which some acknowledge are God-ordained, and others think are independent) that lead to these things and begin to ascribe to the causal forces human characteristics—thus creating gods. Places are set aside to commune with these false gods. For convenience sake, smaller items, thought to hold the power or the communication line of the gods, are brought into homes. Before long, the people are ensnared by the compulsion to give homage to a thing of their own definition instead of to the God of the universe.

The second commandment, recorded in Exodus 20:4–5, reads, “You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them.” Likely, this refers back to the first commandment, “You shall have no other gods before Me,” and specifically forbids the creation of idols. But it is equally dangerous to create an image of God Himself. God has given us reminders enough of His power and glory (Romans 1:20) without man attempting to use created things to represent the Creator.

Functionally, there is no difference between a “graven” image (Deuteronomy 4:16) and a “molten” image (Exodus 34:17). Both are man’s attempt to define and confine the power of God who works over creation. Both are the result of greed and covetousness, along with the fear that God does not have the worshipers’ best interests at heart. Graven images, whether an idol, a crystal, or a charm, are attempts to limit the power of God and reduce it to a small package that we can control. As with any kind of worship, the object of adoration inevitably controls us. All of the adoration and objectivity we begin to fall into is dangerous ground. Hordes of temptations rear up from this. And if [YOU] Christian, are not in your Bible studying, ( not ‘’reading’’ ‘’ S-T-U-D-Y-I-N-G ) daily, you are apt to fall for any one bit of this monkey business of being deceived ! STUDY ! Daily ! 1 Thessalonians Chapter 4:11-12 11 And that ye study to be quiet, and to do your own business, and to work with your own hands, as we commanded you;

12 That ye may walk honestly toward them that are without, and [that] ye may have lack of nothing.

2 Timothy Chapter 2

13 If we believe not, [yet] he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.

14 Of these things put [them] in remembrance, charging [them] before the Lord that they strive not about words to no profit, [but] to the subverting of the hearers.

15 Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.

16 But shun profane [and] vain babblings: for they will increase unto more ungodliness.

Ezekiel 14:5-8 Therefore speak unto them, and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Every man of the house of Israel that setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to the prophet; I the LORD will answer him that cometh according to the multitude of his idols;

5That I may take the house of Israel in their own heart, because they are all estranged from me through their idols.

6Therefore say unto the house of Israel, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Repent, and turn yourselves from your idols; and turn away your faces from all your abominations.

7For every one of the house of Israel, or of the stranger that sojourneth in Israel, which separateth himself from me, and setteth up his idols in his heart, and putteth the stumblingblock of his iniquity before his face, and cometh to a prophet to enquire of him concerning me; I the LORD will answer him by myself:

8And I will set my face against that man, and will make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of my people; and ye shall know that I am the LORD.

Psalms 106:36

And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them.

Isaiah 2:18

And the idols he shall utterly abolish.

2 Kings 17:12

For they served idols, whereof the LORD had said unto them, Ye shall not do this thing.

Isaiah Chapter 45

14 Thus saith the LORD, The labour of Egypt, and merchandise of Ethiopia and of the Sabeans, men of stature, shall come over unto thee, and they shall be thine: they shall come after thee; in chains they shall come over, and they shall fall down unto thee, they shall make supplication unto thee, [saying], Surely God [is] in thee; and [there is] none else, [there is] no God.

15 Verily thou [art] a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Saviour.

16 They shall be ashamed, and also confounded, all of them: they shall go to confusion together [that are] makers of idols.

17 [But] Israel shall be saved in the LORD with an everlasting salvation: ye shall not be ashamed nor confounded world without end.

Leviticus 19:4

Turn ye not unto idols, nor make to yourselves molten gods: I am the LORD your God.

1 John 5:21

Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen.

{ Now go -----------> Go Study ! }

GOD Bless you all.