WEBVTT
00:00.000 --> 00:04.771
2025 marks the 1700th anniversary of the
00:04.838 --> 00:06.172
Council of Nicaea.
00:06.239 --> 00:08.908
The Council of Nicaea is considered by some to
00:08.975 --> 00:11.911
be one of the greatest
achievements of Christendom.
00:11.978 --> 00:15.915
And truly, celebrating the
1700th year of anything
00:15.982 --> 00:18.017
is a historic event.
00:18.084 --> 00:22.422
The meetings began in May of
325 AD at the small town
00:22.489 --> 00:26.459
of Nicaea, in Asia Minor,
in present-day Turkey.
00:26.526 --> 00:29.929
Over 300 bishops
joined in the meetings.
00:29.996 --> 00:33.266
That year, 325 AD, is
considered a benchmark
00:33.333 --> 00:37.670
by many, in the history of the mainstream Christian church.
00:37.737 --> 00:40.907
At the Council, the nature
of Christ and His relationship
00:40.974 --> 00:43.910
to the Father was
discussed and debated.
00:43.977 --> 00:46.646
But there was another issue,
a very important issue,
00:46.713 --> 00:48.815
that was discussed as well.
00:48.882 --> 00:51.985
What was this lesser-known
issue that was discussed
00:52.051 --> 00:53.953
at the Council of Nicaea?
00:54.020 --> 00:57.791
And what does it have to
do with you and me today?
00:57.857 --> 01:00.226
Let's examine that today
on Tomorrow's World.
01:00.293 --> 01:02.095
And get ready, because
later in the program
01:02.162 --> 01:03.763
I'm going to give you
an opportunity
01:03.830 --> 01:08.468
to request your free copy of God's Church Through the Ages.
01:08.535 --> 01:12.071
So, let's go back in time
to that momentous event.
01:12.138 --> 01:14.407
Back to 325 AD.
01:14.474 --> 01:15.842
Now let's ask the question,
01:15.909 --> 01:19.345
"Should We Follow
Constantine or Christ?"
01:19.412 --> 01:20.814
I'll be right back.
01:20.880 --> 01:27.320
♪
01:27.387 --> 01:29.923
Welcome to Tomorrow's World, where we help you make
01:29.989 --> 01:33.259
sense of your world through
the pages of the Bible.
01:33.326 --> 01:38.498
2025 is the 1700th anniversary of the Council of Nicaea.
01:38.565 --> 01:42.335
How astounding that a conference held nearly two millennia ago
01:42.402 --> 01:44.337
is still relevant today.
01:44.404 --> 01:48.475
To commemorate such a momentous occasion, Pope Francis, before
01:48.541 --> 01:52.111
he died, planned to travel to the present-day city of Iznik
01:52.178 --> 01:56.516
in northwest Turkey, about
70 miles from Istanbul.
01:56.583 --> 02:00.186
This is the sight of the
ancient city of Nicaea.
02:00.253 --> 02:04.791
On November 28, 2024, Pope
Francis was quoted as saying
02:04.858 --> 02:06.893
that the Council of Nicaea:
02:06.960 --> 02:10.663
"... Constitutes a milestone
in the journey of the Church
02:10.730 --> 02:15.134
and also of humanity because
faith in Jesus, the Son of God
02:15.201 --> 02:18.738
made flesh for us and for our salvation, was formulated
02:18.805 --> 02:21.708
and professed as a light
that illuminates the
02:21.774 --> 02:25.845
meaning of reality and the
destiny of all history."
02:25.912 --> 02:28.414
Pope Francis was referring
to the fact that the Council
02:28.481 --> 02:32.085
of Nicaea was convened to address questions related
02:32.151 --> 02:35.555
to the divinity of Christ,
and the relationship between
02:35.622 --> 02:37.891
Jesus Christ and the Father.
02:37.957 --> 02:40.927
It's not our purpose to delve into that issue on this program,
02:40.994 --> 02:44.898
nor is it our purpose to discuss the "Nicene Creed," which came
02:44.964 --> 02:46.399
out of that gathering.
02:46.466 --> 02:49.302
But as we think about the significance of the Council
02:49.369 --> 02:52.572
of Nicaea, let's consider an issue that's often forgotten,
02:52.639 --> 02:56.876
but was causing deep divisions during that time--and maybe
02:56.943 --> 02:59.412
even has more importance
for us today.
02:59.479 --> 03:01.014
What is that issue?
03:01.080 --> 03:04.717
Well, it's the importance
of Passover.
03:04.784 --> 03:06.219
You might say:
"Wait, that's wrong.
03:06.286 --> 03:07.954
The Jews keep Passover.
03:08.021 --> 03:11.257
The church in the 300s
kept Easter."
03:11.324 --> 03:14.561
Well, there's more to the story.
03:14.627 --> 03:17.130
To begin our dive into
this subject, let's go
03:17.196 --> 03:20.433
into the writings of
Eusebius of Caesarea.
03:20.500 --> 03:25.071
He was the bishop of Caesarea
in Palestine from about 313 AD
03:25.138 --> 03:27.807
until his death in 339.
03:27.874 --> 03:32.111
He is sometimes referred to as the "father of church history."
03:32.178 --> 03:35.048
He played a prominent role
at the Council of Nicaea
03:35.114 --> 03:38.418
and from his writings we have
an in-depth and fascinating
03:38.484 --> 03:40.687
glimpse of what took place.
03:40.753 --> 03:44.824
Let's pick up the story in his book The Life of Constantine,
03:44.891 --> 03:46.960
Book III, Chapter 5.
03:47.026 --> 03:48.995
Eusebius wrote:
03:49.062 --> 03:53.166
"But before this time [the
time of the Council of Nicaea]
03:53.232 --> 03:57.437
another most virulent disorder had existed, and long afflicted
03:57.503 --> 04:00.506
the Church; I mean the difference respecting the
04:00.573 --> 04:03.109
salutary feast of Easter...."
04:03.176 --> 04:05.378
Now, let's stop right there.
04:05.445 --> 04:08.848
When Eusebius says "Easter"
we have to understand the
04:08.915 --> 04:12.585
word he actually used was
the Greek word "Pascha."
04:12.652 --> 04:15.888
That word is derived from
the Hebrew "Pesach,"
04:15.955 --> 04:19.192
which is the word from
which we get "Passover."
04:19.258 --> 04:22.328
The word "Easter" was used later, as a result of the
04:22.395 --> 04:25.932
influence of the Germans
and the Anglo-Saxons.
04:25.999 --> 04:28.768
The online Catholic
Encyclopedia confirms
04:28.835 --> 04:31.871
this in the article under
the heading "Easter":
04:31.938 --> 04:34.941
"The Greek term for
Easter, pascha...
04:35.008 --> 04:38.811
is the Aramaic form of
the Hebrew pesach...."
04:38.878 --> 04:42.081
Most people are only aware of the word "Passover" by its
04:42.148 --> 04:44.317
association with the Jews.
04:44.384 --> 04:47.120
But in reality, the church leaders that Constantine
04:47.186 --> 04:50.823
convened in 325 AD were
all keeping something
04:50.890 --> 04:52.392
called "Pascha."
04:52.458 --> 04:54.227
That might be a surprise to you.
04:54.293 --> 04:57.063
Of course, if your native
language is French,
04:57.130 --> 05:00.133
Spanish or Italian,
it's not a surprise.
05:00.199 --> 05:02.268
In these languages,
the word for "Easter"
05:02.335 --> 05:04.537
is still related
to "Passover."
05:04.604 --> 05:06.472
In French it's "Paques."
05:06.539 --> 05:08.808
In Spanish it's "Pascua."
05:08.875 --> 05:10.710
In Italian, it's "Pasqua."
05:10.777 --> 05:14.681
It all originally comes
from the Hebrew "Pesach."
05:14.747 --> 05:18.851
Let's re-read Eusebius' account, this time substituting the word
05:18.918 --> 05:20.987
"Pascha," for "Easter."
05:21.054 --> 05:24.524
"But before this time another most virulent disorder
05:24.590 --> 05:27.960
had existed, and long
afflicted the Church;
05:28.027 --> 05:31.264
I mean the difference
respecting the salutary
05:31.330 --> 05:33.332
feast of ["Pascha"]....
05:33.399 --> 05:36.369
For while one party asserted that the Jewish custom should
05:36.436 --> 05:39.572
be adhered to, the other affirmed that the exact
05:39.639 --> 05:43.009
recurrence of the period should
be observed, without following
05:43.076 --> 05:47.180
the authority of those who were in error [meaning, the Jews]."
05:47.246 --> 05:50.817
You see, at the time of Eusebius and Constantine there were
05:50.883 --> 05:54.253
different opinions about the timing of the Christian Pascha.
05:54.320 --> 05:57.490
One was that it should be
connected to the 14th day
05:57.557 --> 05:59.392
of the Hebrew month of Nisan.
05:59.459 --> 06:01.961
Others felt it should
be kept on a Sunday,
06:02.028 --> 06:06.232
with some variation on how they determined which Sunday to keep.
06:06.299 --> 06:09.335
All these differences
caused a major dispute
06:09.402 --> 06:10.870
among the churches.
06:10.937 --> 06:13.673
Going on, Eusebius explains:
06:13.740 --> 06:17.443
"Accordingly, the people being thus in every place divided
06:17.510 --> 06:21.414
in respect of this, and the sacred observances of religion
06:21.481 --> 06:23.616
confounded for a long period...
06:23.683 --> 06:27.420
no one appeared who was capable of devising a remedy for the
06:27.487 --> 06:31.657
evil, because the controversy continued equally balanced
06:31.724 --> 06:33.359
between both parties.
06:33.426 --> 06:37.296
To God alone, the Almighty, was the healing of these differences
06:37.363 --> 06:41.734
an easy task; and Constantine appeared to be the only one on
06:41.801 --> 06:46.105
earth capable of being his minister for this good end...."
06:46.172 --> 06:47.774
What a statement.
06:47.840 --> 06:51.010
A major doctrinal dispute
dividing the church,
06:51.077 --> 06:54.280
and the only person on earth
that could resolve it was
06:54.347 --> 06:57.817
a politically shrewd,
pagan Roman emperor?
06:57.884 --> 07:01.187
Now, some will say:
"Well, Constantine was baptized.
07:01.254 --> 07:02.555
He became a Christian."
07:02.622 --> 07:04.423
We'll talk about that
in a few moments.
07:04.490 --> 07:07.460
That's a fascinating
story in itself.
07:07.527 --> 07:10.763
But before we explore that,
I want to take a moment to
07:10.830 --> 07:14.200
mention the free study guide
we're offering today.
07:14.267 --> 07:17.737
Written by the late evangelist, John Ogwyn, it's entitled,
07:17.804 --> 07:20.373
God's Church Through the Ages.
07:20.439 --> 07:24.710
Jesus Christ founded His
church on Pentecost, 31 AD.
07:24.777 --> 07:27.146
That's almost 2,000 years ago.
07:27.213 --> 07:30.316
That's even longer than the
seventeen centuries back
07:30.383 --> 07:32.151
to the Council of Nicaea.
07:32.218 --> 07:35.221
But what has happened to that church in all this time,
07:35.288 --> 07:37.924
from the first century
to the present?
07:37.990 --> 07:41.194
It's a fascinating
and a sobering story.
07:41.260 --> 07:43.696
And one that in actual fact, many people are only
07:43.763 --> 07:45.331
vaguely aware of.
07:45.398 --> 07:48.301
If you're a follower of Christ, you need to know what the
07:48.367 --> 07:52.471
early Church really believed and
what happened to that Church.
07:52.538 --> 07:55.007
We'll send you this free publication to help you
07:55.074 --> 07:58.845
in your study--it's called
God's Church Through the Ages.
07:58.911 --> 08:00.980
So call, click or write today.
08:01.047 --> 08:01.848
Order now.
08:01.914 --> 08:02.715
♪
08:02.782 --> 08:10.022
For today's free
offer call...
08:10.089 --> 08:15.394
Or go to...
08:15.461 --> 08:18.164
This clear and straight-
forward resource will
08:18.231 --> 08:20.499
help you understand
this vital truth--
08:20.566 --> 08:24.070
straight from the
pages of the Bible.
08:24.136 --> 08:25.705
If you're calling
for the first time,
08:25.771 --> 08:28.741
you will also receive a
free annual subscription to
08:28.808 --> 08:30.610
Tomorrow's World magazine.
08:30.676 --> 08:34.213
Six inspiring issues
discussing news, science,
08:34.280 --> 08:36.983
and modern culture will
help you make sense of
08:37.049 --> 08:40.586
your world from a
biblical perspective.
08:40.653 --> 08:43.623
Call today and join
millions around the world
08:43.689 --> 08:46.225
who are turning to
Tomorrow's World for
08:46.292 --> 08:51.898
truth, prophecy, and hope
in these confusing times.
08:51.964 --> 08:53.399
Call now!
08:53.466 --> 08:57.603
Or go to...
08:57.670 --> 09:02.675
♪
09:02.742 --> 09:03.910
Welcome back.
09:03.976 --> 09:06.245
In the first segment of this program, we were introduced
09:06.312 --> 09:09.682
to one of the crises that
was the catalyst for the
09:09.749 --> 09:11.284
Council of Nicaea.
09:11.350 --> 09:15.154
It was a disagreement on
the timing of the "Pascha."
09:15.221 --> 09:17.823
Some wanted to keep their Christian Pascha with a
09:17.890 --> 09:21.527
connection to the original Passover that Christ kept.
09:21.594 --> 09:23.996
Others wanted to keep it
on a different day, tied
09:24.063 --> 09:26.065
to their church's calendar.
09:26.132 --> 09:29.502
And the bishop Eusebius said
the only person on earth
09:29.568 --> 09:34.106
who could resolve it was the
Roman Emperor Constantine.
09:34.173 --> 09:35.641
And that's quite a statement.
09:35.708 --> 09:39.078
As my fellow presenter and colleague, evangelist
09:39.145 --> 09:42.481
Wallace Smith writes, in the Tomorrow's World article,
09:42.548 --> 09:45.618
"1,700 Years After Nicaea":
09:45.685 --> 09:50.323
"The council in AD 325 was not convened under the authority
09:50.389 --> 09:54.160
of a religious leader, as
one might expect, but the
09:54.226 --> 09:56.562
Roman emperor Constantine.
09:56.629 --> 09:59.098
In fact, Constantine's
fingerprints can be
09:59.165 --> 10:01.200
found all over it."
10:01.267 --> 10:04.203
Let's talk about Constantine
for a few moments.
10:04.270 --> 10:07.473
Was he a real, true follower
of Jesus Christ?
10:07.540 --> 10:11.844
Or was he an astute worldly
king who saw that backing
10:11.911 --> 10:14.513
the mainstream Christian
church would be a golden
10:14.580 --> 10:16.349
political opportunity?
10:16.415 --> 10:20.453
Historian Will Durant asks
and answers that question in
10:20.519 --> 10:23.756
"The Story of Civilization:
Part III, Caesar and Christ":
10:23.823 --> 10:27.793
"Was his conversation sincere--
was it an act of religious
10:27.860 --> 10:31.063
belief, or a consummate
stroke of political wisdom?
10:31.130 --> 10:32.565
Probably the latter...
10:32.631 --> 10:35.768
A real believer would have
been a Christian first and
10:35.835 --> 10:39.638
a statesman afterward; with Constantine it was the reverse.
10:39.705 --> 10:42.808
Christianity was to him
a means, not an end."
10:42.875 --> 10:46.045
Constantine started out
his rule fully immersed
10:46.112 --> 10:49.315
in the pagan practices of
a typical Roman emperor.
10:49.382 --> 10:52.084
Toward the end of his rule,
he was favoring the mainstream
10:52.151 --> 10:55.821
Christian church, and weakening the pagan practices he had
10:55.888 --> 10:57.590
previously taken part in.
10:57.656 --> 10:59.725
So, what caused this change?
10:59.792 --> 11:02.928
In the book "A Short History
of Christianity," the authors
11:02.995 --> 11:05.331
give some background on
how this happened.
11:05.398 --> 11:07.466
On page 33 we read:
11:07.533 --> 11:11.337
"Constantine believed that the Christian God had assisted him
11:11.404 --> 11:13.906
in winning his battles
for control of the Empire,
11:13.973 --> 11:18.144
and he therefore desired a continuance of whatever divine
11:18.210 --> 11:21.814
help the Christian religion might afford in maintaining the
11:21.881 --> 11:24.383
peace and welfare of his rule.
11:24.450 --> 11:28.254
The political wisdom of his policy was amply vindicated
11:28.320 --> 11:32.191
in the extravagant devotion
and loyalty which he received
11:32.258 --> 11:34.226
from his Christian subjects.
11:34.293 --> 11:37.396
Constantine's own personal religion is a subject
11:37.463 --> 11:39.031
of speculation.
11:39.098 --> 11:41.867
He was not baptized
until his deathbed.
11:41.934 --> 11:44.937
This much can be said
with assurance:
11:45.004 --> 11:48.841
(1) his intervention in religious affairs was in large
11:48.908 --> 11:52.778
measure dictated by what he considered to be politically
11:52.845 --> 11:56.849
expedient and (2) from
the beginning of his reign
11:56.916 --> 12:00.386
he increasingly identified
himself with the church..."
12:00.453 --> 12:04.123
So, this pagan emperor,
who was gradually seeing the
12:04.190 --> 12:08.427
value of professing allegiance to the Christian God, found this
12:08.494 --> 12:14.166
new religion of his to be in
a doctrinal crisis in 325 AD.
12:14.233 --> 12:16.335
That's when he called
the bishops to the
12:16.402 --> 12:18.070
Council of Nicaea.
12:18.137 --> 12:20.773
He personally presided over
the meetings and guided
12:20.840 --> 12:22.041
the discussion.
12:22.108 --> 12:24.910
In fact, he had so much influence over what took
12:24.977 --> 12:28.013
place there that author
H.G. Wells made this
12:28.080 --> 12:29.648
shocking statement:
12:29.715 --> 12:33.152
"A very important thing
for us to note is the role
12:33.219 --> 12:36.889
played by the emperor in the
fixation of Christianity...
12:36.956 --> 12:40.126
It is very manifest that
in much of the history of
12:40.192 --> 12:44.363
Christianity at this time
[that is, in the 300s AD]
12:44.430 --> 12:48.901
the spirit of Constantine
the Great is as evident as,
12:48.968 --> 12:52.905
or more evident than,
the spirit of Jesus."
12:52.972 --> 12:55.207
What an astonishing
thing to say.
12:55.274 --> 12:58.310
For a church, calling itself Christian, to have a council to
12:58.377 --> 13:01.981
discuss doctrinal disagreements, you'd think having it guided
13:02.047 --> 13:05.518
by the spirit of Christ
would be a priority.
13:05.584 --> 13:07.319
But it wasn't.
13:07.386 --> 13:09.421
So, what happened
at the Council?
13:09.488 --> 13:12.958
In particular, what happened
in the matter of the Pascha?
13:13.025 --> 13:16.695
Would it remain tied to the Passover that Jesus observed,
13:16.762 --> 13:21.634
or would it be disconnected from Christ's teaching and practice?
13:21.700 --> 13:24.904
To answer the question,
let's go back to Eusebius.
13:24.970 --> 13:28.874
He sums up the debate this
way in Chapter 14 of
13:28.941 --> 13:30.576
"The Life of Constantine":
13:30.643 --> 13:34.947
"The result was that they were not only united as concerning
13:35.014 --> 13:38.551
the faith, but that the time
for the celebration of the
13:38.617 --> 13:43.622
salutary feast of ["Pascha"]
was agreed on by all..."
13:43.689 --> 13:49.328
In truth, it was a forced unity, a standardization by coercion.
13:49.395 --> 13:51.363
That's what was accomplished.
13:51.430 --> 13:54.633
After the Council, Constantine himself wrote a letter to
13:54.700 --> 13:57.403
all the churches, and
this is what he said:
13:57.469 --> 14:01.473
"At this meeting the question concerning the most holy day of
14:01.540 --> 14:05.044
["Pascha"] was discussed, and
it was resolved by the united
14:05.110 --> 14:08.714
judgment of all present, that this feast ought to be kept
14:08.781 --> 14:12.117
by all and in every place
on one and the same day....
14:12.184 --> 14:15.721
Let us then have nothing in common with the detestable
14:15.788 --> 14:19.091
Jewish crowd; for we have
received from our Saviour
14:19.158 --> 14:21.393
a different way...."
14:21.460 --> 14:22.728
And that was it.
14:22.795 --> 14:26.332
With contempt and derision,
it was declared that the
14:26.398 --> 14:30.202
Christians should have nothing in common with the Jews.
14:30.269 --> 14:33.239
But what if what was declared
to be in common with the Jews
14:33.305 --> 14:36.809
was actually something God
commanded in Scripture?
14:36.875 --> 14:40.045
What if it was part of Christ’s teaching in the New Testament
14:40.112 --> 14:41.747
that was banned?
14:41.814 --> 14:44.850
That's a good question,
and we'll explore it in
14:44.917 --> 14:46.252
the next portion.
14:46.318 --> 14:49.788
But before that, let me again offer you our free study guide,
14:49.855 --> 14:52.258
God's Church Through the Ages.
14:52.324 --> 14:54.627
It asks and answers
the question:
14:54.693 --> 14:56.395
"What Happened to the Church?"
14:56.462 --> 15:00.165
It describes in detail,
"A Dramatic Transition."
15:00.232 --> 15:03.869
How the visible, mainstream church turned to traditions and
15:03.936 --> 15:08.540
teachings never held by Jesus Christ or the early disciples.
15:08.607 --> 15:12.611
It goes into detail of the very event we're describing today.
15:12.678 --> 15:15.214
And much more we don't
have the time to address.
15:15.281 --> 15:18.884
If you want to really know what happened in the real history
15:18.951 --> 15:22.054
of the Christian Church,
you need this booklet.
15:22.121 --> 15:23.656
So don't delay.
15:23.722 --> 15:25.591
Call, write or order online.
15:25.658 --> 15:26.558
Order now.
15:26.625 --> 15:27.459
♪
15:27.526 --> 15:29.762
This clear and straight-
forward resource will
15:29.828 --> 15:32.131
help you understand
this vital truth--
15:32.197 --> 15:34.867
straight from the
pages of the Bible.
15:34.933 --> 15:35.968
Call now!
15:36.035 --> 15:39.705
Or go to...
15:39.772 --> 15:41.940
♪
15:42.007 --> 15:43.475
Welcome back.
15:43.542 --> 15:47.012
So far in today's program we've seen that the Council of Nicaea
15:47.079 --> 15:50.249
was convened to discuss some very important disputes in
15:50.316 --> 15:51.984
the church at that time.
15:52.051 --> 15:54.987
One of those issues was
the timing of the festival
15:55.054 --> 15:56.422
of "Pascha".
15:56.488 --> 15:59.358
Against this backdrop,
we read in Constantine's
15:59.425 --> 16:02.461
letter to the churches that Christians were to have
16:02.528 --> 16:05.264
"nothing in common
with the Jews."
16:05.331 --> 16:06.832
Now why is this important?
16:06.899 --> 16:11.136
Well, a little background:
even by the 4th century AD
16:11.203 --> 16:14.039
there were some Christians especially in the east,
16:14.106 --> 16:17.176
who still had a connection
with the observance of
16:17.242 --> 16:21.647
Passover on the 14th day of
the Jewish month of Nisan.
16:21.714 --> 16:24.450
And those who were keeping
the Passover on the 14th,
16:24.516 --> 16:27.686
were following the teachings that had been handed down
16:27.753 --> 16:30.989
to them, all the way back
to the apostle John.
16:31.056 --> 16:34.493
The testimony of Polycarp,
a direct disciple of the
16:34.560 --> 16:37.296
apostle John, attests to this.
16:37.363 --> 16:42.568
Polycrates, Polycarp's disciple, also kept Passover in this way.
16:42.634 --> 16:45.637
You see, these faithful disciples, Polycarp and
16:45.704 --> 16:49.174
Polycrates, were simply
following the biblical
16:49.241 --> 16:51.176
Christian Passover.
16:51.243 --> 16:54.179
This was plain instruction
from Jesus Christ, in the
16:54.246 --> 16:55.647
New Testament.
16:55.714 --> 16:58.817
Jesus kept the Passover,
on the 14th day of Nisan,
16:58.884 --> 17:01.954
with His disciples the
night before He died.
17:02.020 --> 17:04.957
During this observance He
gave wine to the disciples
17:05.023 --> 17:08.794
to drink, as a symbol of
His blood shed for them.
17:08.861 --> 17:11.897
And He gave bread to the
disciples to eat, as a
17:11.964 --> 17:15.367
symbol of His body which
would be broken for them.
17:15.434 --> 17:19.571
And then He washed their feet, as a symbol of His humility.
17:19.638 --> 17:23.809
Notice what He said at the
conclusion of His last Passover
17:23.876 --> 17:28.680
observance in John 13:12-15...
17:28.747 --> 17:31.917
"So when He had washed their feet, taken His garments,
17:31.984 --> 17:34.486
and sat down again,
He said to them,
17:34.553 --> 17:36.889
"Do you know what I
have done to you?
17:36.955 --> 17:41.827
You call Me Teacher and Lord, and you say well, for so I am.
17:41.894 --> 17:45.330
If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet,
17:45.397 --> 17:48.801
you also ought to wash
one another's feet.
17:48.867 --> 17:52.004
For I have given you an
example, that you should do
17:52.070 --> 17:54.339
as I have done to you."
17:54.406 --> 17:58.510
A few years ago, there was
a popular slogan, "WWJD?"
17:58.577 --> 18:01.113
Or, "What Would Jesus Do?"
18:01.180 --> 18:03.582
Well, when it comes to
doctrine and practice,
18:03.649 --> 18:05.851
we know what Jesus did.
18:05.918 --> 18:09.688
The Bible is a detailed
record of what He did.
18:09.755 --> 18:13.659
And Jesus kept the Passover
on the 14th of Nisan--
18:13.725 --> 18:16.361
the biblical record
is very clear.
18:16.428 --> 18:19.665
And He told His followers
to do so as well.
18:19.731 --> 18:23.235
The Apostle Paul also kept
the Christian Passover
18:23.302 --> 18:27.506
on the 14th of Nisan, to memorialize the suffering
18:27.573 --> 18:29.808
and death of Jesus Christ.
18:29.875 --> 18:31.944
And he taught the brethren
in the church of Corinth
18:32.010 --> 18:33.679
to keep it as well.
18:33.745 --> 18:40.118
Notice what Paul said, in
1 Corinthians 11:23-25...
18:40.185 --> 18:43.689
"For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered
18:43.755 --> 18:47.259
to you: that the Lord Jesus
on the same night in which
18:47.326 --> 18:50.562
He was betrayed took bread;
and when He had given thanks,
18:50.629 --> 18:52.297
He broke it and said,
18:52.364 --> 18:56.235
"Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you;
18:56.301 --> 18:59.238
do this in remembrance of Me."
18:59.304 --> 19:03.509
In the same manner He also took
the cup after supper, saying,
19:03.575 --> 19:06.812
"This cup is the new
covenant in My blood.
19:06.879 --> 19:11.850
This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."
19:11.917 --> 19:15.621
Summing up what Paul taught and what he practiced, we read in
19:15.687 --> 19:19.591
1 Corinthians 5:7-8...
19:19.658 --> 19:22.995
"For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed
19:23.061 --> 19:24.263
for us.
19:24.329 --> 19:27.332
Therefore let us
keep the feast..."
19:27.399 --> 19:30.335
So, why were some avoiding
any connection to the
19:30.402 --> 19:35.173
14th of Nisan Christian
Passover by the 300s AD?
19:35.240 --> 19:38.777
In order to not look
like the Jews.
19:38.844 --> 19:43.081
And they standardized the non-
Jewish Paschal festival, fixing
19:43.148 --> 19:46.485
it on the Sunday following
the first vernal full moon,
19:46.552 --> 19:50.122
supposedly commemorating the resurrection of Christ.
19:50.188 --> 19:55.027
That Sunday observance grew into what is known today as Easter.
19:55.093 --> 19:58.997
By the way, Jesus was not
resurrected on a Sunday.
19:59.064 --> 20:01.366
He was resurrected near
the end of the Sabbath--
20:01.433 --> 20:05.737
Saturday--exactly three days
and three nights after He had
20:05.804 --> 20:06.972
died on the stake.
20:07.039 --> 20:09.641
But that's another story
for another time.
20:09.708 --> 20:13.845
Let's be clear--the resurrection is extremely important.
20:13.912 --> 20:16.748
We base our hope of
eternal life on it.
20:16.815 --> 20:20.953
As we find in Romans 8:11...
20:21.019 --> 20:24.189
"But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead
20:24.256 --> 20:27.993
dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will
20:28.060 --> 20:32.230
also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit
20:32.297 --> 20:34.199
who dwells in you."
20:34.266 --> 20:37.769
The resurrection is our
hope and our future.
20:37.836 --> 20:40.839
But you can search the New Testament from beginning to end,
20:40.906 --> 20:45.410
and you'll not find a single instruction or command to
20:45.477 --> 20:47.679
observe it as a feast day.
20:47.746 --> 20:50.616
You see, Constantine really
had very little interest
20:50.682 --> 20:54.987
in the truth--he just wanted everyone to be on the same page.
20:55.053 --> 20:57.956
As the award-winning
"History of Rome" podcast
20:58.023 --> 20:59.925
by Mike Duncan states...
20:59.992 --> 21:03.195
"... [T]he Emperor was not
so much interested in which
21:03.261 --> 21:06.865
side was right, or which interpretation was best,
21:06.932 --> 21:10.702
so long as in the end,
everyone agreed."
21:10.769 --> 21:12.604
So, who will you follow?
21:12.671 --> 21:17.476
Constantine and traditions
he established to differentiate
21:17.542 --> 21:19.745
nominal Christians
from the Jews?
21:19.811 --> 21:24.349
Or Jesus Christ, who plainly outlined His clear teachings
21:24.416 --> 21:26.985
in our New Testament,
for everyone to see?
21:27.052 --> 21:31.423
We should have unity and cohesion in the body of Christ.
21:31.490 --> 21:36.928
The Apostle Paul explained
that in 1 Corinthians 1:10...
21:36.995 --> 21:40.799
"Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of the Lord Jesus
21:40.866 --> 21:44.670
Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there
21:44.736 --> 21:48.407
be no divisions among you,
but that you be perfectly
21:48.473 --> 21:52.544
joined together in the same
mind and in the same judgment."
21:52.611 --> 21:56.181
But at the same time, Jesus Christ knows that in this age,
21:56.248 --> 22:00.452
because we're living in Satan's world, there will be division.
22:00.519 --> 22:04.356
And the truth will sometimes
be a source of that division,
22:04.423 --> 22:07.059
because not everyone will
accept the truth.
22:07.125 --> 22:14.099
Notice what Jesus said in
Matthew 10:34, 36-37...
22:14.166 --> 22:17.436
"Do not think that I came
to bring peace on earth.
22:17.502 --> 22:20.372
I did not come to bring
peace but a sword...
22:20.439 --> 22:24.242
and 'a man's enemies will be those of his own household.'
22:24.309 --> 22:27.279
He who loves father
or mother more than Me
22:27.345 --> 22:29.748
is not worthy of Me."
22:29.815 --> 22:32.617
In other words, when it
comes to the truth of God,
22:32.684 --> 22:35.887
and the teachings of Christ,
we cannot compromise,
22:35.954 --> 22:38.423
even for unity's sake.
22:38.490 --> 22:42.027
And even if it involves
members of our own family.
22:42.094 --> 22:45.831
If we want to be loyal to Christ, we need to read this
22:45.897 --> 22:51.603
Book, we understand this Book and we need to follow this Book.
22:51.670 --> 22:54.806
There's much more about this topic than we can cover
22:54.873 --> 22:56.007
in a short program.
22:56.074 --> 22:58.844
And so, we want to send
you the free study guide
22:58.910 --> 23:02.514
we're offering today, God's Church Through the Ages.
23:02.581 --> 23:05.917
It explains how Church history is laid out through the account
23:05.984 --> 23:11.089
of the seven churches of ancient Asia Minor in Revelation 2-3.
23:11.156 --> 23:14.326
The messages to the churches were actually prophetic
23:14.392 --> 23:17.662
for future ages of the
New Testament Church.
23:17.729 --> 23:21.299
This study guide will open your eyes to Church history like you
23:21.366 --> 23:23.635
may never have seen before.
23:23.702 --> 23:26.304
And it will give you understanding and a sober
23:26.371 --> 23:30.075
warning for God's Church as we approach the end of the age.
23:30.142 --> 23:31.910
You need this study guide.
23:31.977 --> 23:34.146
So call, click or write today.
23:34.212 --> 23:35.614
Order now.
23:35.680 --> 23:36.481
♪
23:36.548 --> 23:43.555
For today's free
offer call...
23:43.622 --> 23:48.660
Or go to...
23:48.727 --> 23:51.630
This clear and straight-
forward resource will
23:51.696 --> 23:53.832
help you understand
this vital truth--
23:53.899 --> 23:57.369
straight from the
pages of the Bible.
23:57.435 --> 23:59.070
If you're calling
for the first time,
23:59.137 --> 24:02.073
you will also receive a
free annual subscription to
24:02.140 --> 24:04.042
Tomorrow's World magazine.
24:04.109 --> 24:07.412
Six inspiring issues
discussing news, science,
24:07.479 --> 24:10.382
and modern culture will
help you make sense of
24:10.448 --> 24:13.985
your world from a
biblical perspective.
24:14.052 --> 24:16.922
Call today and join
millions around the world
24:16.988 --> 24:19.491
who are turning to
Tomorrow's World for
24:19.558 --> 24:25.197
truth, prophecy, and hope
in these confusing times.
24:25.263 --> 24:26.665
Call now!
24:26.731 --> 24:30.635
Or go to...
24:30.702 --> 24:35.540
♪
24:35.607 --> 24:39.010
In this program, we've seen
that the Council of Nicaea
24:39.077 --> 24:42.013
was not only convened to
discuss the nature of Christ,
24:42.080 --> 24:45.383
it also was convened to settle the matter of the timing of
24:45.450 --> 24:47.285
the Christian Pascha.
24:47.352 --> 24:50.989
The majority in the now state-
religion went along with the
24:51.056 --> 24:52.557
edicts of Constantine.
24:52.624 --> 24:56.394
They kept a Sunday Pascha-- which became Easter.
24:56.461 --> 24:59.598
It was now the religion of
the Empire, so it was the
24:59.664 --> 25:01.733
convenient thing to do.
25:01.800 --> 25:04.035
But not everyone went along.
25:04.102 --> 25:07.239
Some held on to the biblical Christian Passover taught
25:07.305 --> 25:11.343
by Christ, as well as the
other biblical Holy days.
25:11.409 --> 25:14.946
We have proof of that in the preserved text of a sermon
25:15.013 --> 25:19.084
by a priest in Antioch
named John Chrysostom.
25:19.150 --> 25:22.921
It was given in 386-387 AD.
25:22.988 --> 25:25.790
It was entitled,
"Against the Jews."
25:25.857 --> 25:28.860
Note how much he
despised the Jews.
25:28.927 --> 25:31.897
But also note that his
text shows there were still
25:31.963 --> 25:35.767
faithful Christians keeping
the biblical Christian Passover
25:35.834 --> 25:37.702
well after Nicaea.
25:37.769 --> 25:39.337
He said this:
25:39.404 --> 25:43.074
"The festivals of the pitiful and miserable Jews are soon
25:43.141 --> 25:47.879
to march upon us one after the other and in quick succession:
25:47.946 --> 25:52.150
the feast of Trumpets, the feast of Tabernacles, the fasts.
25:52.217 --> 25:55.654
There are many in our ranks
who say they think as we do.
25:55.720 --> 25:58.790
Yet some of these are going
to watch the festivals and
25:58.857 --> 26:01.860
others will join the Jews
in keeping their feasts
26:01.927 --> 26:03.929
and observing their fasts.
26:03.995 --> 26:07.365
I wish to drive this
perverse custom from
26:07.432 --> 26:09.668
the Church right now...."
26:09.734 --> 26:13.738
The Feast of Trumpets, the
Feast of Tabernacles, the fast
26:13.805 --> 26:18.743
(called the Day of Atonement), and the New Testament Passover.
26:18.810 --> 26:22.447
These biblical feast days--
forever established by the
26:22.514 --> 26:26.451
Creator God--were still being kept by faithful Christians
26:26.518 --> 26:29.821
sixty years after the
Council of Nicaea.
26:29.888 --> 26:34.526
And they're still being kept today, 1700 years after Nicaea.
26:34.592 --> 26:37.963
The Living Church of God,
the sponsor and producer of
26:38.029 --> 26:42.400
Tomorrow's World, keeps these ancient and holy festivals in
26:42.467 --> 26:47.639
honor of our great God and our living, loving Savior each year.
26:47.706 --> 26:50.575
If you'd like to learn more,
get in touch with us.
26:50.642 --> 26:52.644
We'd love to hear from you.
26:52.711 --> 26:56.848
Dr. Jerry Pillay is the
general secretary of the
26:56.915 --> 26:58.783
World Council of Churches.
26:58.850 --> 27:01.419
He had this to say,
speaking of the importance
27:01.486 --> 27:05.657
of the celebrations in
2025 to commemorate the
27:05.724 --> 27:06.958
Council of Nicaea:
27:07.025 --> 27:10.829
"It gives us the opportunity
to ask afresh with others what
27:10.895 --> 27:13.131
Nicaea means for us today....
27:13.198 --> 27:17.435
Then, as now, the call
to unity was heard within
27:17.502 --> 27:21.773
the context of a troubled,
unequal, and divided world."
27:21.840 --> 27:25.410
This is a troubled,
unequal and divided world.
27:25.477 --> 27:29.547
But let's not forsake truth
for the sake of unity.
27:29.614 --> 27:34.019
Let's not follow Constantine--
let's follow Christ.
27:34.085 --> 27:36.788
If you'd like to learn
more about these feasts,
27:36.855 --> 27:38.390
get in touch with us.
27:38.456 --> 27:40.358
Just order your
free study guide,
27:40.425 --> 27:42.761
God's Church Through the Ages.
27:42.827 --> 27:45.363
And be sure to join us
next time, as Gerald Weston,
27:45.430 --> 27:49.734
Wallace Smith, and I explain the good news of Tomorrow's World,
27:49.801 --> 27:53.638
and the truth, comfort and
hope it can bring you
27:53.705 --> 27:55.040
and your family.
27:55.106 --> 27:56.307
See you next time.
27:56.374 --> 27:57.208
♪
27:57.275 --> 28:03.648
For today's free
offer call...
28:03.715 --> 28:08.086
Or go to...
28:08.153 --> 28:10.822
Call today and join
millions around the world
28:10.889 --> 28:13.558
who are turning to
Tomorrow's World for
28:13.625 --> 28:17.962
truth, prophecy, and hope
in these confusing times.
28:18.029 --> 28:20.331
The preceding program is produced by the
28:20.398 --> 28:21.399
Living Church of God.
28:21.466 --> 28:25.403
♪