One of my favorite books on my bookshelf is titled The Feasts of the Lord by Kevin Howard and Marvin Rosenthal. I believe every believer should have this book on their bookshelf. It has been for quite some time on my list of favorite books that are listed to the right of this posting on this page (see "JAGS Favorite Books".)
I would like to run through some highlights of this book briefly in anticipation of the coming Feast of Trumpets, sundown September 4th through sundown September 5th (and 6th according to Jewish tradition ever since the second temple was destroyed) soon to be followed (ten days later) by the Day of Atonement.
The authors provide biblical evidence that Jesus fulfilled four of the seven Jewish holidays known as "the feasts of the Lord" and that the word feast means appointed times. Those four feasts were fulfilled by Jesus at His first coming...there are three more that will be fulfilled at His second coming.
Here is a list of the seven feasts of the Lord; the first four (those that Jesus has already fulfilled) are spring feasts, the last three (still to be fulfilled) are fall feasts:
1) The Feast of Passover
2) The Feast of Unleavened Bread
3) The Feast of Firstfruits
4) The Feast of Weeks
5) The Feast of Trumpets
6) The Day of Atonement
7) The Feast of Tabernacles
All of these feasts can be found in the 23rd chapter of Leviticus, but are also mentioned in various places throughout the bible.
"These seven feasts typify the sequence, timing, and significance of the major events of the Lord's redemptive career. They commence at Calvary where Jesus voluntarily gave Himself for the sins of the world (Passover), and climax at the establishment of the messianic Kingdom of the Messiah's second coming (Tabernacles). No box has to be manufactured, no text twisted, and no truth manipulated to make these appointed feasts conform to specific events in the Messiah's life." (The Feasts of the Lord, p. 14)
But what I find to be most amazing and wonderful is that Jesus fulfilled the four spring feasts on the exact biblical date of each feast (according to the Jewish calendar, of course, not the Gregorian calendar that we use)! Which would lead us to conclude that His fulfillment of the remaining fall feasts will also occur exactly on the Jewish calendar date of each of the fall Feasts.
Here is a quick look at the Feasts that Jesus has fulfilled already:
The Feast of Passover: Jesus became the Passover Lamb for us when He died on the cross for our sins and we know from the Bible that it was at the Passover Feast time: Jesus had Passover meal the night before His crucifixion (remember that Jewish days begin at sundown so that meal was at the beginning of the day of Passover) and He was crucified the next day, which was still Passover as Passover would not end until sundown that day. Remember His disciples wanted to remove His body from the cross as soon as they could in order to have it in the tomb prior to sundown that day, as sundown would be the beginning of the Sabbath (Friday evening to Saturday evening); and no work was to be done on the Sabbath, even carrying the body of Jesus into the tomb.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread: He was without sin; biblically "leaven" signifies sin, thus "unleavened bread" would signify the sinless (unleavened) Christ (the bread of life for us who believe.) Further, "unleavened bread speaks of sanctification. He was set apart. His body would not decay in the grave." (The Feasts of the Lord, p. 23) The first day of the seven day Feast of unleavened Bread occurs on the second day of Passover. Jesus' body was in the tomb on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, a feast at which leaven was strictly forbidden; and His body saw no decay, none of the decay which happens in breads containing leaven. He was truly the Bread of Life.
The Feast of Firstfruits: the resurrection of Jesus Christ happened on the day of Firstfruits, Jesus being the firstfruit of the many believers to come who will follow Him in life everlasting. "Jesus rose again on the third day (literally the third day of Passover season, Nisan 16), on the day of the Firstfruits....the resurrection of Jesus is the guarantee and the beginning (the firstfruits) of the final harvest, or resurrection, of all mankind." (The Feasts of the Lord, p.86)
The Feast of Weeks: 7 weeks (49 days) from Firstfruits (from the resurrection of Jesus Christ) and then on the "day after" is the Feast of Weeks. Also known as Pentecost as it contains 50 days. It was on the actual Feast of Weeks holiday (the 50th day) that the Holy Spirit came upon the believers gathered in the Upper Room. Jesus Himself sent the Holy Spirit for the fulfillment of this feast.
So, what does that tell us about the next Feast Day that I am always so excited to see arriving each year? It tells us, as I stated in an earlier posting, that beginning on the evening of September 4 and all day tomorrow until sundown on September 5th, it is possible that this will be the year (as it is possible each year) that Jesus will come back to fulfill the next Feasts in chronological order (as He fulfilled each of the spring feasts in chronological order) beginning with this Feast of Trumpets!
Look at this excerpt from The Feasts of the Lord (p. 114) concerning "The Last Trump":
"Scripture often speaks of men or angels blowing trumpets, yet only twice is it recorded that GOD blows a trumpet. In both instances, it is the shofar. The first occasion was at Mt. Sinai when the Lord revealed Himself from Heaven and prepared to bring the nation (the Israelites) under the Old Covenant. The Shekinah glory of the Lord descended with a fiery tempest and the sound of the shofar: 'Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire...And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai.' (Exodus 19:18-20)
The last occasion on which the Lord will blow the shofar will be at the Messiah's return. The Lord will once again descend from Heaven with the whirlwind, the clouds of His glory fire, and the sound of the trumpet. The prophet Zechariah predicted: "Then the Lord will be seen over them. And His arrow will go forth like lightning. The Lord God will blow the trumpet, and go with whirlwinds from the south." (Zech. 9:14)
As the Day of the Lord begins, God's last trump will be sounded, the Messiah will reveal Himself in great wrath, and He will prepare the nation (of Israel) to be brought into the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31; Ezek. 20:35-38; Zech. 13:9)
Both of these great events - God's last trump and the resurrection of the righteous - are intricately connected to the Rapture of the Church in the New Testament (1 Cor. 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)....like Israel's ancient trumpet, God's last trump will accomplish several purposes. First, it will gather an assembly to the Lord in what is known as "the Rapture of the Church." The righteous will be delivered "from the wrath to come" (1 Thess. 1:10) since God has not appointed them unto wrath (1 Thess. 5:9). The righteous dead will be resurrected, and the living will be gathered "from the four winds" (Matthew 24:31). Second, the last trump will sound God's battle alarm against Satan and this wicked world as he begins "the great day of His wrath" (Rev. 6:17). This will draw the day of man's rebellion to a close. Finally, the last trump will announce the coming and soon coronation of the Messiah, for He alone will be "exalted in that day" (Isaiah 2:17)."
If you don't have this book, you need to get it! This is only a small sampling of the wealth of biblical information that it contains! I refer to it many times a year...it is an essential book for me.
This evening begins the Feast of Trumpets, and I will find a way to celebrate it in a biblical fashion, including blowing the shofar! But I hope to hear another shofar, "the trump of God," even more!
I would like to run through some highlights of this book briefly in anticipation of the coming Feast of Trumpets, sundown September 4th through sundown September 5th (and 6th according to Jewish tradition ever since the second temple was destroyed) soon to be followed (ten days later) by the Day of Atonement.
The authors provide biblical evidence that Jesus fulfilled four of the seven Jewish holidays known as "the feasts of the Lord" and that the word feast means appointed times. Those four feasts were fulfilled by Jesus at His first coming...there are three more that will be fulfilled at His second coming.
Here is a list of the seven feasts of the Lord; the first four (those that Jesus has already fulfilled) are spring feasts, the last three (still to be fulfilled) are fall feasts:
1) The Feast of Passover
2) The Feast of Unleavened Bread
3) The Feast of Firstfruits
4) The Feast of Weeks
5) The Feast of Trumpets
6) The Day of Atonement
7) The Feast of Tabernacles
All of these feasts can be found in the 23rd chapter of Leviticus, but are also mentioned in various places throughout the bible.
"These seven feasts typify the sequence, timing, and significance of the major events of the Lord's redemptive career. They commence at Calvary where Jesus voluntarily gave Himself for the sins of the world (Passover), and climax at the establishment of the messianic Kingdom of the Messiah's second coming (Tabernacles). No box has to be manufactured, no text twisted, and no truth manipulated to make these appointed feasts conform to specific events in the Messiah's life." (The Feasts of the Lord, p. 14)
But what I find to be most amazing and wonderful is that Jesus fulfilled the four spring feasts on the exact biblical date of each feast (according to the Jewish calendar, of course, not the Gregorian calendar that we use)! Which would lead us to conclude that His fulfillment of the remaining fall feasts will also occur exactly on the Jewish calendar date of each of the fall Feasts.
Here is a quick look at the Feasts that Jesus has fulfilled already:
The Feast of Passover: Jesus became the Passover Lamb for us when He died on the cross for our sins and we know from the Bible that it was at the Passover Feast time: Jesus had Passover meal the night before His crucifixion (remember that Jewish days begin at sundown so that meal was at the beginning of the day of Passover) and He was crucified the next day, which was still Passover as Passover would not end until sundown that day. Remember His disciples wanted to remove His body from the cross as soon as they could in order to have it in the tomb prior to sundown that day, as sundown would be the beginning of the Sabbath (Friday evening to Saturday evening); and no work was to be done on the Sabbath, even carrying the body of Jesus into the tomb.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread: He was without sin; biblically "leaven" signifies sin, thus "unleavened bread" would signify the sinless (unleavened) Christ (the bread of life for us who believe.) Further, "unleavened bread speaks of sanctification. He was set apart. His body would not decay in the grave." (The Feasts of the Lord, p. 23) The first day of the seven day Feast of unleavened Bread occurs on the second day of Passover. Jesus' body was in the tomb on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, a feast at which leaven was strictly forbidden; and His body saw no decay, none of the decay which happens in breads containing leaven. He was truly the Bread of Life.
The Feast of Firstfruits: the resurrection of Jesus Christ happened on the day of Firstfruits, Jesus being the firstfruit of the many believers to come who will follow Him in life everlasting. "Jesus rose again on the third day (literally the third day of Passover season, Nisan 16), on the day of the Firstfruits....the resurrection of Jesus is the guarantee and the beginning (the firstfruits) of the final harvest, or resurrection, of all mankind." (The Feasts of the Lord, p.86)
The Feast of Weeks: 7 weeks (49 days) from Firstfruits (from the resurrection of Jesus Christ) and then on the "day after" is the Feast of Weeks. Also known as Pentecost as it contains 50 days. It was on the actual Feast of Weeks holiday (the 50th day) that the Holy Spirit came upon the believers gathered in the Upper Room. Jesus Himself sent the Holy Spirit for the fulfillment of this feast.
So, what does that tell us about the next Feast Day that I am always so excited to see arriving each year? It tells us, as I stated in an earlier posting, that beginning on the evening of September 4 and all day tomorrow until sundown on September 5th, it is possible that this will be the year (as it is possible each year) that Jesus will come back to fulfill the next Feasts in chronological order (as He fulfilled each of the spring feasts in chronological order) beginning with this Feast of Trumpets!
Look at this excerpt from The Feasts of the Lord (p. 114) concerning "The Last Trump":
"Scripture often speaks of men or angels blowing trumpets, yet only twice is it recorded that GOD blows a trumpet. In both instances, it is the shofar. The first occasion was at Mt. Sinai when the Lord revealed Himself from Heaven and prepared to bring the nation (the Israelites) under the Old Covenant. The Shekinah glory of the Lord descended with a fiery tempest and the sound of the shofar: 'Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire...And when the blast of the trumpet sounded long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice. Then the Lord came down upon Mount Sinai.' (Exodus 19:18-20)
The last occasion on which the Lord will blow the shofar will be at the Messiah's return. The Lord will once again descend from Heaven with the whirlwind, the clouds of His glory fire, and the sound of the trumpet. The prophet Zechariah predicted: "Then the Lord will be seen over them. And His arrow will go forth like lightning. The Lord God will blow the trumpet, and go with whirlwinds from the south." (Zech. 9:14)
As the Day of the Lord begins, God's last trump will be sounded, the Messiah will reveal Himself in great wrath, and He will prepare the nation (of Israel) to be brought into the New Covenant (Jer. 31:31; Ezek. 20:35-38; Zech. 13:9)
Both of these great events - God's last trump and the resurrection of the righteous - are intricately connected to the Rapture of the Church in the New Testament (1 Cor. 15:51-52; 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)....like Israel's ancient trumpet, God's last trump will accomplish several purposes. First, it will gather an assembly to the Lord in what is known as "the Rapture of the Church." The righteous will be delivered "from the wrath to come" (1 Thess. 1:10) since God has not appointed them unto wrath (1 Thess. 5:9). The righteous dead will be resurrected, and the living will be gathered "from the four winds" (Matthew 24:31). Second, the last trump will sound God's battle alarm against Satan and this wicked world as he begins "the great day of His wrath" (Rev. 6:17). This will draw the day of man's rebellion to a close. Finally, the last trump will announce the coming and soon coronation of the Messiah, for He alone will be "exalted in that day" (Isaiah 2:17)."
If you don't have this book, you need to get it! This is only a small sampling of the wealth of biblical information that it contains! I refer to it many times a year...it is an essential book for me.
This evening begins the Feast of Trumpets, and I will find a way to celebrate it in a biblical fashion, including blowing the shofar! But I hope to hear another shofar, "the trump of God," even more!
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