THE AUTHORITY OF ALL SCRIPTURE
Paul said, “ALL SCRIPTURE is given by INSPIRATION OF GOD, and is PROFITABLE for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (II Tim. 3:16).
ü ALL SCRIPTURE includes the Old Testament AND New Testament.
Ø Someone said, “The Old Testament is the New Testament concealed and the New Testament is the Old Testament revealed.”
1) They go together to give a complete picture.
2) They help us understand each other.
3) They are complimentary not contradictory.
ü All Scripture is given by INSPIRATION OF GOD.
Ø If we ignore the Old Testament:
1) We will be ignoring God.
2) We will be muzzling or silencing God.
3) We will have a limited understanding of the New Testament.
4) We will have a limited understanding of Bible prophecy.
ü All Scripture is PROFITABLE.
Ø Everything in the Bible is important.
Jesus told some Jews to, “SEARCH the SCRIPTURES; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which TESTIFY OF ME” (Jn. 5:39).
ü Jesus told us to SEARCH the SCRIPTURES.
ü Jesus said the Scriptures are ABOUT or TESTIFY of Him.
ü But the New Testament didn’t exist when Jesus said this.
ü The only Scriptures that existed when Jesus said this are found in the Old Testament.
ü If we ignore the Old Testament, we will ignore things Jesus wanted us to know about Him.
Paul said, “For whatsoever things were written AFORETIME were written for our LEARNING, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have HOPE” (Rom. 15:4).
ü The Old Testament is for the Christian’s LEARNING and HOPE.
Note:
- Jesus called the two men on the road to Emmaus FOOLS for not believing all that the Old Testment prophets said (Luke 24:25).
- Jesus called Pharisees and Sadducees HYPOCRITES because they paid more attention to the weather than the Old Testament signs of His coming (Matt. 16:1-3).
INTRODUCTION TO THE FEASTS OF THE LORD
(Prophecy Plus Ministries)
ü There are seven Feasts of the Lord.
Ø All of them are listed in Leviticus chapter 23:
1) The Feast of Passover (Lev. 23:4-5).
2) The Feast of Unleavened Bread (Lev. 23:6-8).
3) The Feast of First Fruits (Lev. 23:9-14).
4) The Feast of Pentecost (Lev. 23:13-22).
5) The Feast of Trumpets (Lev. 23:23-25).
6) The Feast of Atonement (Lev. 23:26-32).
7) The Feast of Tabernacles (Lev. 23:33-44).
ü They are called “Feasts of the Lord” not Jewish feasts or feasts of Israel.
ü The Lord gave these feasts:
Ø So Israel and the Church will remember the past and teach it to their children.
Ø So Israel and the Church will have a better understanding of what God has done and what God will do (have a prophetic view of the future).
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE PROPHETIC
ü Understanding the Feasts of the Lord will help us understand what’s going on.
Ø The three spring feasts are prophecies about the First Coming of Jesus.
1) They have been perfectly or LITERALLY fulfilled.
Ø The one summer feast is a prophecy about the Church age.
1) It is currently being fulfilled.
Ø The three fall feasts appear to be prophecies connected with the Second Coming of Jesus.
1) They will probably be perfectly or LITERALLY fulfilled in the near future.
ü Every time the Jews have celebrated a feast day for about 3500 years from the time of Moses until today, they have rememembered a segment of their history and revealed a prophecy about the first coming of Jesus, the Church or the Second Coming of Jesus.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE FASTS, CELEBRATIONS & PROPHECIES
Ø Christians sometimes think of a feast as a meal.
1) But to the Jew a feast day could be just the opposite.
Ø A feast day could be a fast day instead of a meal.
1) Or it could be a celebration instead of a meal.
Ø Some feast days were fast days (for mourning or affliction).
1) And some feast days were celebrations (for rejoicing).
Ø But the Feasts of the Lord were fasts, celebrations and prophecies.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE ALSO THANKSGIVING FOR THREE HARVESTS
ü The spring harvest or thanksgiving.
Ø The Feast of First Fruits thanks God for the barley harvest (the resurrection of Jesus and others).
ü The summer harvest or thanksgiving.
Ø The Feast of Weeks thanks God for the wheat harvest (the beginning of the Church).
ü The fall harvest or thanksgiving.
Ø The Feast of Tabernacles thanks God for the remainder of the harvest of the earth: fruit, dates, etc. (the Tribulation Saints, Israel, etc.).
ü So the Feasts of the Lord are multi-purpose: fasts, celebrations, prophecies, and thanksgiving.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE ABOUT JESUS
- The Feast of PASSOVER (About the sacrifice of Jesus; the redemption of Israel and the redemption of the Church)
Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even CHRIST OUR PASSOVER is sacrificed for us: (I Cor. 5:7).
- The Feast of Unleavened BREAD (About the burial of Jesus; holy living; living without sin, etc.)
And JESUS said unto them, I am the BREAD of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst. (Jn. 6:35)
- The Feast of FIRST FRUITS (About the resurrection of Jesus; then all of His)
But now is CHRIST risen from the dead, and become the FIRSTFRUITS of them that slept. For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: CHRIST THE FIRSTFRUITS; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming. (I Cor. 15:20-23).
- The Feast of Weeks or PENTECOST (About the Holy Spirit sent by Jesus; harvest; the birth of the Church)
And when the day of PENTECOST was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance (Acts 2:1-4).
- The Feast of TRUMPETS (About gathering; appears to be the Rapture or gathering of the Church and Israel gathered to be grafted back in)
But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the TRUMP of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall
be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord (I Thess. 4:13-17).
Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last TRUMP: for the TRUMPET shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed (I Cor. 15:51-52).
- The Feast of ATONEMENT (About sorrow and repentance of Israel; appears to be the Second Coming of Jesus with His Church to rescueIsrael at the Battle of Armageddon)
And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the ATONEMENT (Rom. 5:11).
- The Feast of TABERNACLES (About Kingdom rest and restoration; appears to be the beginning of the Millennial Reign of Jesus on the Throne of David with Satan bound and chained for a thousand years)
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt [TABERNACLED] among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth (Jn. 1:14).
Yet have I set my king UPON MY HOLY HILL OF ZION (Psa. 2:6).
Thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. He shall be great, and shall becalled the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him THE THRONE OF HIS FATHER DAVID: and he shall reign OVER THE HOUSE OF JACOB for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end (Luke 1:31-33).
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE “SET APART”
And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be HOLY CONVOCATIONS, even these are my feasts (Lev. 23:1-2).
ü The feasts of the Lord are “HOLY CONVOCATIONS.”
Ø Holy means the Feasts of the Lord are “set apart” by God.
Ø Convocations means the Feasts of the Lord are “assemblies” or “rehearsals.”
Ø The Feasts of the Lord are set apart by God to assemble or rehearse the people for the real thing.
ü We can rehearse events that are past or future.
Ø Some people rehearse the Civil War which means they remember a past event.
Ø Some people rehearse a play which means they rehearse for a future event.
Ø The feasts of the Lord are holy convocations that do both.
1) They point backwards and forwards.
2) They remind us of past events, but they also look forward to future events.
Ø The Lord’s Supper is an example.
1) For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s DEATH till he COME (I Cor. 11:26).
2) The Lord’s Supper is an assembly or a rehearsal that reminds us of the past (the DEATH of Jesus).
3) And the Lord’s Supper is an assembly or a rehersal that reminds us of the future (the SECOND COMING of Jesus).
Ø The Feasts of the Lord are selected past events that reveal facts about selected future events.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE A SHADOW OF THINGS TO COME
For the law having a SHADOW of good THINGS TO COME, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect (Heb. 10:1).
ü The Law (the writings of Moses) has or contains a SHADOW of good THINGS TO COME (a shadow of future things).
Ø A shadow is not the real thing, but it is an image of the real thing.
ü The Old Testament contains an image of future things.
Ø These are good things not doom and gloom things.
Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a SHADOW of things to come; but the BODY is of Christ (Col. 2:16-17).
ü The holy days (the Feasts of the Lord) and sabbaths are a SHADOW of things to come, but the BODY (the real thing) is Jesus.
Ø The Feasts of the Lord are set aside by God as pictures, or object lessons or visual aids.
Ø They recall past events and illustrate future events.
Ø The past event is the shadow and the future event is the real thing.
Ø Someone has said, “A picture is worth a thousand words.”
Ø The Feasts of the Lord are pictures that help us understand the real thing.
1) The real thing is Jesus.
- If we want to understand Jesus, we need to look at the Old Testament pictures.
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD ARE CLUSTERED INTO SEASONS
These are the feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in THEIR SEASONS (Lev. 23:4).
ü The Feasts of the Lord are SEASONAL:
Ø The spring season (time of the spring rains).
Ø The summer season (time of the dry or summer season).
Ø The fall season (time of the fall rains).
THREE TIMES IN A YEAR shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the FEAST OF UNLEAVENED BREAD, and in the FEAST OF WEEKS, and in the FEAST OF TABERNACLES: and they shall not appear before the LORD EMPTY (Deut. 16:16).
ü Every male Jew in Israel was required to appear or visit the Temple in Jerusalem THREE TIMES A YEAR.
ü These three visits were called “Pilgrimages” or “Pilgrimage Festivals.”
ü They were required to visit the Temple during:
Ø The FEAST OF UNLEAVENED BREAD (time of the spring season),
Ø The FEAST OF WEEKS (time of the dry or summer season),
Ø The FEAST OF TABERNACLES (time of the fall season).
ü Every male Jew was required to take an offering.
Ø They could not appear before the Lord EMPTY (without an offering).
Note:
- As a devout Jew, Jesus observed the feasts.
- Many of His teachings and miracles occurred while He was in Jerusalemto observe the feasts.
- Joseph and Mary were on a Pilgrimage to celebrate the Feast of Passover when the twelve year old Jesus tarried in Jerusalem to teach at theTemple (Luke 2:41-49).
- Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Jews’ Passover when He drove the money changers out of the Temple (Jn. 2:13-25).
Ø Interestingly, Jesus called it the Jews’ Passover not the Feast of Passover or the Feast of the Lord or the Lord’s Passover.
1) This means the Jews had stopped doing God’s will and started doing their will (they had turned the Feast of Passover into a ritual and an opportunity to make money.).
- Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Feast of Pentecost when he healed the man at the Pool of Bethesida who had been sick for thirty-eight years (Jn. 5:1-16).
- Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles when He taught at the Temple (Jn. 7:1-39).
Put my diagram “The Feasts of the Lord” here.
HEBREW AND GREGORIAN CALENDARS
| Month on Hebrew (Jewish) Sacred Calendar | Month on Hebrew (Jewish) Civil Calendar | Hebrew (Jewish) Name | Gregorian Name |
| 1 | 7 | Nisan (Abib) | March-April |
| 2 | 8 | Lyyar (Ziv) | April-May |
| 3 | 9 | Sivan | May-June |
| 4 | 10 | Tammuz | June-July |
| 5 | 11 | Ab | July-August |
| 6 | 12 | Elul | August-Sept. |
| 7 | 1 | Tishri | Sept.-Oct. |
| 8 | 2 | Heshvan | Oct.-Nov. |
| 9 | 3 | Kieslev | Nov.-Dec. |
| 10 | 4 | Tebeth | Dec.-Jan. |
| 11 | 5 | Shebat | Jan.-Feb. |
| 12 | 6 | Adar | Feb.-Mar. |
| 13
Leap Year |
Adar Sheni |
1) The Hebrew Civil Calendar is based upon the farming seasons.
2) In Israel, Leap Year comes once every three years.
3) Leap Year (Adar Sheni) is 29 days long and it means “the second Adar.”
4) Every third year is Leap Year and the Jews add an extra month.
5) A Jewish prophetic year is 360 days long.
6) One orbit of the moon around the earth takes 29 ½ days.
7) A Jewish month is 29-30 days long.
8) A Jewish month begins with a new moon.
9) The full moon occurs at the middle of the month.
10) A Jewish day begins at sundown (approximately 6 p.m.) and ends at sundown the next day.
11) A Jewish Sabbatical year lasts seven years (2001, 2008, 2015, etc.).
THE FEASTS OF THE LORD
| Month on Hebrew Sacred Calendar | Hebrew Month and Day | Feast | Gregorian Month and Season or Pilgrimage |
| 1st Month | Month of Nisan (also called Abib) | March-April
|
|
| Day 14 | Passover | Spring | |
| Day 15-21 | Unleavened Bread | Spring | |
| Day 16 | Firstfruits | Spring | |
| 3rd Month | Month of Sivan | May-June
|
|
| Day 6 | Weeks or Pentecost | Summer | |
| 7th Month | Month of Tishri | Sept.-Oct.
|
|
| Day 1 | Trumpets or
Rosh Hashanah |
Fall | |
| Day 10 | Atonement or
Yom Kippur |
Fall | |
| Day 15-21 | Tabernacles
Or Succoth |
Fall |
1) There are three feast seasons (spring, summer and fall).
- The first three feasts are spring season feasts (These three feasts were fulfilled at the first coming of Jesus).
- The fourth feast is a summer season feast (This is currently being fulfilled by the Church Age).
- The last three feasts are fall season feasts (They have a future fulfillment).
2) There are three “Pilgrimage Feasts” or three feasts that the male Jews were supposed to attend in Jerusalem each year.
- They were supposed to attend the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the spring.
- They were supposed to attend the Feast of Weeks in the summer.
- They were supposed to attend the Feast of Tabernacles in the fall.
Note:
- The ten days between Tishri 1 and Tishri 10 are called “The Ten Days of Awe” (They are for self-examination and repentance in preparation for Atonement. They may pre-figure a period of time between the Rapture and the Second Coming.).
- The longest feast in the spring is Unleavened Bread. The male Jews went to Jerusalem for eight days in the spring to observe all three feasts, but they sometimes said they were going there to observe Unleavened Bread.
- The longest feast in the fall is Tabernacles. The male Jews went toJerusalem for twenty-one days in the fall to observe all three feasts, but they sometimes said they were there to observe Tabernacles.
THE JEWISH DIVISIONS OF A DAY
ü A Jewish day is divided into two twelve-hour segments:
Ø It has twelve hours of darkness called NIGHT.
1) And twelve hours of light called DAY.
Ø The two twelve-hour divisions are based upon the Creation:
1) In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light DAY, and the darkness he called NIGHT. And the evening and the morning were the first day (Gen. 1:1-5).
ü A Jewish NIGHT is twelve hours long (6 p.m. to 6 a.m.).
Ø A Jewish night is divided into four watches (a sentry’s turn of duty).
1) The first watch is from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.
2) The second watch is from 9 pm. to 12 pm.
3) The third watch is from 12 p.m. to 3 a.m.
4) The fourth watch is from 3 a.m. to 6 a.m.
- It was the fourth watch when Jesus walked on water (Matt. 14:25; Mk. 6:48).
ü A Jewish DAY is twelve hours long (6 a.m. to 6 p.m.).
Ø A Jewish day is divided into four principal hours.
1) The first principal hour begins at 6 a.m.
- It was morning (probably 6 a.m.) when Jesus was taken to Pontius Pilate (Matt. 27:1).
2) The third principal hour begins at 9 a.m.
- It was the third hour when Jesus was crucified (Mk. 15:25).
- It was the third hour when the Holy Spirit fell on Pentecost (Acts 2:15).
3) The sixth principal hour begins at 12 a.m.
- Darkness covered the land from the sixth hour unto the ninth hour when Jesus was crucified (Matt. 27:45; Mk. 15:33)
4) The ninth principal hour begins at 3 p.m.
- Jesus died when the ninth hour came (Matt. 27:46-50).
Note:
- Evening began at 3 p.m. to the Jews.
- Joseph of Arimathaea asked for the body of Jesus in the evening or around 3 p.m. (Matt. 27:57).
SYMBOLIC MEANING IN SOME OF THE OFFERINGS
ü The Jews were required to present offerings at the feasts of the Lord (Deut. 16:16).
ü The offerings are a different study from the feasts, but they are also prophetic and they reveal many things about Jesus.
Ø No offering is acceptable to God unless it speaks of Jesus.
Ø He alone decides what is acceptable.
ü It should be noted that the Burnt offering, the Peace offering, the Sin offering, and the Trespass offering are offerings that involve the shedding of blood.
Ø These point to the death of Jesus.
ü The Meat offering (also called the Meal offering, Grain offering and the Food offering) did not involve the shedding of blood.
Ø These point to Jesus as the Bread of Life.
ü In some cases, the type of animal offered (whether it is a bullock, young ox, sheep, goat, turtle-dove, pigeon, etc.) speaks of the person’s ability to pay.
Ø The poor could offer something of lesser value which means the door is open to everyone.
ü The perfection of the offerings (no blemishes) speaks of the perfection of Jesus.
ü The offerings teach that we are accountable to God and there is a penalty for sin.
ü Laying hands on the offering signifies the transfer of sins.
ü Washing the offering signifies the washing of the Water of the Word.
ü The ashes from a burnt offering signify the finished work of Jesus.
ü Using the best grain or finest flower signifies the Bread of Life would
be the very best Bread of Life available.
ü Oil “IN” the bread, flour, etc. usually speaks of the Holy Spirit IN Jesus.
Ø He was indwelt by the Holy Spirit).
ü Oil “ON” the offering usually speaks of the anointing (pouring out) of the Holy Spirit ON Jesus.
Ø The Holy Spirit descended like a dove and lit UPON Jesus (Matt. 3:16).
ü Spices, frankincense, things that give off a good aroma usually speak of God’s pleasure with the sacrifice.
Ø The good life of Jesus, His obedience, His death, etc. pleased God.
ü Leaven speaks of sin, evil, false doctrines, etc. while unleavened or no leaven speaks of sinlessness, perfection, etc.
Ø Jesus was without leaven or sin.
ü The offerings teach us that we should be thankful, give to God, worship Him, recognize Him as the source of what we have, etc.
ü Peace offerings teach that we need to make peace with God and there is a way.
ü Killing animals reminds us that we can have a Substitute.
Ø Someone can take our place.
ü The offerings teach us obedience pleases God.
ü Offerings made outside the camp signify the death of Jesus outside the city of Jerusalem.
ü The bitter herbs on Passover are a reminder of the hard times under slavery in Egypt.