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If you wish you may click here to read the long, unedited version of this article (12,000 words)

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“Enter ye in at the strait gate:

for wide is the gate,

broad is the way,

that leadeth to destruction,

and many there be which go in thereat: 

Because strait is the gate,

and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life,

and few there be that find it.”

Matthew 7:13-14 

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THE NARROW WAY: THE PILGRIM’S PATHWAY

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That world-shaking allegory, Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, picked up the theme of the Narrow Gate.

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The hero of the story was Christian, a man warned to flee from the City of Destruction (the world), and to embark on a journey to the Heavenly City.

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And on his journey, this pilgrim entered into the Narrow Gate (The Strait Gate).

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But God has also given this same Narrow Way parable in the night heavens!

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Incredible? Yes, incredible…and amazing too!

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And though these two stars can hardly be considered a constellation…

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…but when sitting next to the two stars which comprise the Broad Gate, well, it makes a powerful statement, for the people of God. 

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So please come along on this journey and find out just why this pathway graces the night heavens…

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…and perhaps you might find yourself embarking on your own pilgrimage up that very same Narrow pathway.

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John Bunyan – Wikipedia – Public Domain

Pilgrim’s Progress Enters The Wicket Gate-Wikipedia public domain

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LOCATION

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This most amazing phenomenon is seen throughout the winter.

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Although it can be observed most of the winter, it is seen best when it is the western part of the sky, at winter’s end (The end of winter being the final scene of this entire heavenly Gospel story).

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Orion, the Dragon, and the Glorious White Horse are beginning to descend into the western horizon (This can actually be seen as early as December, in the pre-dawn hours).

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And at this point it is apparent that the Fleeing Woman of Revelation 12 Constellation  is veering toward the two bright stars, known as Castor and Pollux (sketch below).

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The two stars, Castor and Pollux, make up the concept of the Orion’s Narrow Gate Stars.

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This can even be observed into June in the western sky (for a short time just after dark).

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While a dark night is best for seeing the Woman Constellation, the 4 stars which comprise the Narrow Gate/Wide Gate Stars can be seen even under mediocre conditions.

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It begins with the Fleeing Woman of Revelation 12 Constellation (AKA Ursa Major) going towards these two doors.

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The two doors are each composed of two bright stars.

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The two bright stars that comprise the Narrow Gate are the two brightest stars of the Orion the Reaper’s sickle.

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The two stars that comprise the ‘Wide Gate’ Stars are the two brightest stars of the wave of water that comes out of the Dragon Constellation’s mouth (for explanation of “Wave of Water”, just click here).

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The Wide Gate Stars are composed of the two brightest stars of the Auriga Constellation, known as the star, Capella, and the star, Menkalinan.

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The stars that make up the ‘Narrow Gate’ are about two-third the width of the Wide Gate.

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WIDE & NARROW GATES IN THE HEAVENS

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As the opening verse says…

…”Enter ye in at the strait gate:

for wide is the gate,

and broad is the way,

that leadeth to destruction,

and many there be which go in thereat:

Because strait is the gate,

and narrow is the way,

which leadeth unto life,

and few there be that find it.”

Matthew 7:13-14 

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So. what are these two gates all about?

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And how can I choose the right door?

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Well, just read this article and these questions and more will be answered.

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But before we explore these questions, let’s take a look at why these two sets of stars represent these two biblical gates.

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This sketch, while not 100% accurate, gives a fair portrayal of how this constellation group appears at winter’s end and even into June, when above the western horizon.

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HOW THE GATES RELATE TO ORION & DRAGON

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This sketch below is when these constellations are in the eastern sky in early winter (However, this constellation group can even be seen as early as July, in the pre-dawn hours).

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In the eastern sky, it’s not so easily seen which gate the Revelation 12 Woman will enter.

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The Wide Gate is made of the two brightest stars of this Wave of Water Constellation.

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Satan spews out the deadly water of his false worldly ideologies; which many of these ideologies have a form of godliness…

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…but these ideologies, in various ways, are not in harmony with, or add to the Bible, which is, of course, strictly forbidden (see Deuteronomy 4:2). 

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On the other hand, the Strait Gate (narrow gate) is composed of the two brightest stars of the Orion The Reaper’s sickle.

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The true Strait Gate represents Jesus, the Word of God. 

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Listen… “I [Jesus] am the door: by Me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.” John 10:9

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THE TWO PATHWAYS

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“Thus saith the LORD; Behold,

I set before you the way of life,

and the way of death.”  

Jeremiah 21:8.

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As this above verse declares, God has set these two pathways before each human.

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And each human must decide which door he or she will enter.

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Nobody born into this world has been overlooked.

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NOBODY!

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Listen… “[Jesus] was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” John 1:9.

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Now if this verse is correct (and it is), then Christ is the light that enlightens, “every man that comes into the world”.

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Even those who have lived in remote places, throughout history.

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Every person has a conscience. And every human must choose whom he or she will serve (though he may not specifically know various Bible names for God). 

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This choice is what the Bible calls, “the way of life, and the way of death.”  Jeremiah 21:8.

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JESUS IS THE DOOR TO SALVATION

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The Strait Gate (or The Narrow Gate) ultimately represents Salvation. Salvation is the free gift of God.

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It is only by God’s grace that a man, woman, or child can enter in to Everlasting Life.

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And that free gift of Everlasting Life was provided by the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross, some 2,000 years ago.

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But the Devil has tried his best to mislead the church-world down into the wrong path, via many false shepherds, who are merely, “wolves-in-sheep’s-clothing”.

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Listen to Paul’s warning to the Church… “For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.” Acts 20:29

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And so, by such “grievous wolves” taking a set of verses out of context, false doctrines are formed, of which some have been accepted by the Church over the centuries.

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ABOVE STAR-CHART – Sign of the Son of Man – www.theheavensdeclare.net – Not for commercial uses

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THE DECEITFULNESS OF SIN…

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“There is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Proverbs 14:12.

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It’s often difficult to know whether we are walking on the Narrow Way or whether we are on the Broad Way.

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This above passage from proverbs brings out this concept… “There is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.”  

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This confusing world in which we live seems to offer us many opportunities and many material things, which often appear harmless…even good!

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And of course, we must work among unbelievers and live among them. And so, these things greatly confuse the issue.

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If only the people of the world behaved totally evil, then there would be no confusion among Christians.

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But the people of the world have their own “form of godliness”. Yet, the Bible warns us concerning their supposed degree of goodness…

Listen…“Having a form of godliness,

but denying the power thereof:

from such turn away.”

2nd Timothy 3:5

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So, this begins to get confusing! Are we supposed to embrace unbelievers, or separate from them?

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Well, this above verse says we are to turn away from those who merely have “a form of godliness” but deny the true godly power of God.

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JUST HOW NARROW IS THE NARROW GATE?

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There are many ministries which proudly proclaim the mantra, “The Narrow Way”.

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Now some of these may truly teach the Narrow Way!

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But, no doubt, many of these do not fully understand, just how narrow is the Narrow Way.

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Jesus told His Disciples, “I am the Way…” John 14:6.

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When His Disciples began to follow Jesus, Scripture states, “and they forsook all and followed Him” Luke 5:11.

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Now God is not necessarily calling for every Christian to sell all their belongings.

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But when the True Worshiper receives the Spirit of Christ, at that point, he or she begins to lose interest in the self-seeking amusements, attainments, and attractions of the world. 

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The Believer slowly begins to desire the things of Heaven: agape love, purity, patience, Bible meditation, self-denial, gentleness, graciousness, etc..

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Like that popular song says, “Turn your eyes upon Jesus…And the things of the world, will grow strangely dim, in the light of His glory and grace”.

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New york times square terabass – cropped image – wikipedia share-alike license

 

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BUT HOW NARROW IS NARROW GATE?

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But back to the Narrow Gate. We still haven’t answered this question. Just how
narrow is it?

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Simply put, the Narrow Gate is only as wide as Jesus.

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In other words. We must ultimately die to self.

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Self will not fit through that Door.

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Only selfless Jesus fits through that Door.

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And as the Christian fully dies to self, he or she will be able to say with Paul… “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” Galatians 2:20  

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THE PURITY OF JESUS

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The world is waiting to see Jesus in us.

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Anything that confuses or obscures Jesus, must be considered for the trash-heap.

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If ever there was a time for even the best of these diversions to be mingled into Christianity, that time is all but gone.

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And only those willing to cast away such things, for the sake of becoming perfected in Christ, before the onlooking world, will be used by God.

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Those who do, will be the New Testament fulfillment of Gideon’s 300 (see Judges Chapter 7).

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NARROW GATE STARS JUST TOO NARROW!

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One thing you will notice, upon locating this heavenly phenomenon, is that the Revelation 12 Woman is too large to fit through the Narrow Gate.

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So,” the question to be answered is this…

…How can she possibly fit through those Narrow Gate Stars, which appear much too narrow?”

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One great answer to this perplexing problem is this:

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When Jesus said, “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God”…

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…His Disciples exclaimed, “Who then can be saved?”

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To this question, Jesus answered, “With men it is impossible. But not so for God: for with God, all things are possible”.

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This is the answer also to just how this Revelation 12 Woman will finally fit through that very Narrow Gate.

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“GO AND SELL WHAT YOU HAVE…”

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“Jesus said unto him, If thou wilt be perfect, go and sell that thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come and follow Me.” Matt. 19:21 

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And so this concept of,  “forsaking all to follow Jesus”, is one of the most basic concepts found in the New Testament.

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This is what the children of Israel refused to do, for the most part, and fell in the wilderness as a result.

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“And when they had brought their ships to land,

they forsook all, and followed Him.”

Luke 5:11.

Here the Disciples of Jesus forsook all so that they could be Followers of Jesus.

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Peter reiterates this idea when talking with Jesus…

…”Then Peter began to say unto him,

Lo, we have left all,

and have followed thee.”

Mark 10:28

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Those who are deceived into thinking that Christianity is just something to merely complement their worldly existence and their earthly dreams, show that they do not understand the Bible.

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Jesus told His disciples…  “So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:33.

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This verse declares that Jesus is not looking for double-minded followers.

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He only wants those who are willing to live the rest of their lives in total service for Him.

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Christ calling His Disciples by Edward Armitage 1869 courtesy wikigallery.com public domain

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CHRIST’S LOVE: GREATEST ATTAINMENT

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God must think very highly of “Love”.

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Because He came into this world and laid down His life in order to share that love with a world held captive by selfishness.

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And He offers that love to anyone willing to strive for that love.

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But the kind of love which Jesus offers is so much greater than anything Mankind has ever yet known.

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And so this Revelation 12 Woman is heading straight for the Narrow Door which leads to love…and life…and to joy everlasting.

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And so, we are now able to see where we are heading…to the Narrow Gate…and into the Promised Land which lies just beyond that Narrow Gate.

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THE END

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A HEAVENLY HOBBY

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“Lift up your eyes on high,

and behold Who hath created these things;

that brings out their host by number:

He calls them all by names by the greatness of His might,

for that He is strong in power;

not one faileth.”

Isaiah 40:26

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ABOVE PICTURE – Starry Night at La Silla – cropped  and altered image – Wikimedia – Share-Alike license

 

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“AND WHEN YE SEE THESE THINGS…

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LOOK UP, LIFT UP YOUR HEAD”

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In this busy work-a-day world, there are many very interesting things which can occupy one’s time and energy: hobbies, and careers, and entertainments and worries, and habits, to name just a few.

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But having said this, there is one hobby which every ‘Noble Berean’ may take up, which only compliments the pursuit of the heavenly Prize.

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Yes, Signs Of Heaven becomes a wonderfully rewarding hobby which, unlike many less meaningful hobbies, pays off with rich, heavenly rewards. Everlasting rewards!

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And unlike the person in this photo with equipment, all you need is fairly good vision, and a dark, starry night.

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And once a person really gets to know these heavenly messengers, it will become very apparent that the message connected with these signs is truly a message to be heeded.

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Thus will the Christian be able to share this message with others. And there are perhaps many nuances and hidden biblical truths to these signs which have yet to be discovered.

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Astronomy Amateur – cropped image – Wikipedia – share-alike license

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“And there shall be signs in the sun,

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and in the moon,

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and in the stars;

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and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;

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the sea and the waves roaring;”

Luke 21:25

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ABOVE CHART: Summer Constellations with Doves (Sagittarius) & Woman (Ursa Major)

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FIRST FIND ORION & 7 STARS

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The very first step in finding these many constellations, should be to find the two main constellations: Orion, and the 7 Stars (aka, The Big Dipper).

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These two constellations represent Christ (Orion), and His Church (7 Stars).

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And just as these are the easiest constellations to find, so too, the first place to begin studying the Bible is the Four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, John).

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These four books present Christ and His Church, when He walked the earth, just as Orion and the 7 Stars represent Christ and His Church, as seen up in the heavens.

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Then, once you are comfortable finding these two constellations, you can begin to locate the next closest constellations, and so on.

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ABOVE PICTURE: Orion the Soldier and the Revelation 12 Dragon (Hyades & Pleiades, etc.) – winter constellations – www.signsofheaven.org – not for commercial use

ABOVE PICTURE – 7 Stars Constellation as the Cross (aka Big Dipper) – winter – signsofheaven.org – not for commercial uses

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