Our Torah portion this week is Exodus 6:2-9:35.
As we have seen, God has provided sign posts along the way to point us in what direction the future will take us. These examples are called the feasts of God. Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, and the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) physically occurred during the days of Moses, but alluded to the days of our Messiah Yeshua. He died on Passover, was in the grave during the first part of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, He rose on the Feast of First Fruits, and the Holy Spirit was given on the Feast of Weeks (Pentecost). However, the fall feasts have yet to be fulfilled by Messiah. They are the Feast of Trumpets, the Feast of Atonements, and the Feast of Tabernacles. (Messiah was born on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles, so this one is actually partially fulfilled.) As believers we need to pay close attention to when these feasts occur each year. Is it possible that this is the year when we will hear the shout of the archangel and the trump of God on the Feast of Trumpets?
From our reading of Exodus this week we see that the Exodus is meant as a kind of sign post as well. A summary of what God was accomplishing can be found in Exodus 6.
Exodus 6:6-8 (KJV)
6
Wherefore say unto the children of Israel, I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with a stretched out arm, and with great judgments:
7
And I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God: and ye shall know that I am the LORD your God, which bringeth you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
8
And I will bring you in unto the land, concerning the which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage: I am the LORD.
Notice the number of times that God has said, "I will ...." These are the things that God would accomplish by the Exodus. They are:
I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians.
I will rid you out of their bondage.
I will redeem you with a stretched out arm and with great judgments.
I will take you to me for a people.
I will be to you a God.
I will bring you in unto the land, concerning the which I did swear to give it to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob; and I will give it you for an heritage.
Often we read these statements without realizing how they apply to believers today. Just like the feasts of God, these "I wills" have been and will be fulfilled by our Messiah Yeshua.
Yeshua will bring us out from under the burden of sin.
Yeshua will rid us out of the bondage of sin.
Yeshua will redeem us with a stretched out arm and with great judgments.
Yeshua will take us for a people.
Yeshua will be to us a God.
Yeshua will bring us in unto the land.
When Yeshua died on the cross and rose from the dead, He defeated sin and death. When we trust in Yeshua He saves us from the burden and bondage of sin. We become free to follow and obey Him. One day Yeshua will return and will redeem us with a stretched out arm and with great judgments against Satan and the systems of the world. We will be His people and He will be our God. Finally, He will bring us into our eternal home in the new earth where we will experience everlasting life with Him.
This should bring us great joy!!! But are there other lessons and examples in the Exodus that point to Messiah Yeshua? Let's not treat the Exodus as only a good Bible story, but let's dig down deep and discover the riches that God has for us there.
Showing posts with label Firstfruits. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Firstfruits. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 20, 2016
Saturday, October 3, 2015
Let's Celebrate!
It's getting to be that time of year again. We will soon be in the midst of all the hype, decorations, store displays, and sales that surround the coming of Christmas. Although there are some who despise the commercial aspects of the season, most are truly excited to enter into the special peace and joy that Christmas represents. We love the traditions, the smells, the gifts, the sounds, and the time of family sharing that come with the holiday. God made us that way!
But God didn't give us Christmas to satisfy those cravings. Christmas developed around a date that was traditionally celebrated as the birth date of a number of pagan deities. The date of December 25th was specifically chosen in order to co-opt a pagan holiday and somehow turn it into the celebration of the Son of God's birth. Unfortunately, no matter how you dress up and change the language of pagan idolatry, that day remains corrupted.
But God didn't leave us without days of celebration! In His Word He gave us many feast days to celebrate over the course of the year. All we need to do is turn to Leviticus 23. Here we find the days that we are commanded to observe.
Leviticus 23:1-2 (KJV)
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 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.
The following are listed: the seventh day (Saturday) Sabbath, Passover, the feast of Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, the feast of Weeks (or Pentecost), the feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonements, and the feast of Tabernacles (booths).
But God didn't give us Christmas to satisfy those cravings. Christmas developed around a date that was traditionally celebrated as the birth date of a number of pagan deities. The date of December 25th was specifically chosen in order to co-opt a pagan holiday and somehow turn it into the celebration of the Son of God's birth. Unfortunately, no matter how you dress up and change the language of pagan idolatry, that day remains corrupted.
But God didn't leave us without days of celebration! In His Word He gave us many feast days to celebrate over the course of the year. All we need to do is turn to Leviticus 23. Here we find the days that we are commanded to observe.
Leviticus 23:1-2 (KJV)
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 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.
The following are listed: the seventh day (Saturday) Sabbath, Passover, the feast of Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, the feast of Weeks (or Pentecost), the feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonements, and the feast of Tabernacles (booths).
Each one is unique and serves various purposes for celebration. But it is the feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot in Hebrew) that reminds us most of the joy and peace of Christmas.
Leviticus 23:34,40-43 (KJV)
34 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD.
40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.
41 And ye shall keep it a feast unto the LORD seven days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month.
42 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths:
43 That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
This week of celebration comes on the heel of the days of repentance, which is culminated by the Day of Atonements. We are confronted by our failures, our sin, and our wretchedness before God. But then we put up our sukkot (our tent-like booths with branches for roofs). We truly and joyfully celebrate that God forgives His people. We gather with family and friends. We eat and maybe even sleep in our sukkot, watching the stars overhead through the roof. We party and thank our dear God for His blessings and love.
And guess what? It is very likely that Yeshua was born on the first day of the feast of Tabernacles (which falls in September or October). Isn't this when we should celebrate His birth? Plus, when we look to God's future fulfillment of the fall feasts, we find that the feast of Trumpets represents Yeshua's return, the Day of Atonements represents the day of judgment, and the feast of Tabernacles represents the wedding feast of Yeshua and His bride (Israel).
Compare this with Christmas and we find it a poor substitute for the celebrations that God has commanded in His Word. God wants us to celebrate, but let's celebrate what He has provided for us!
34 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD.
40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.
41 And ye shall keep it a feast unto the LORD seven days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month.
42 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths:
43 That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
This week of celebration comes on the heel of the days of repentance, which is culminated by the Day of Atonements. We are confronted by our failures, our sin, and our wretchedness before God. But then we put up our sukkot (our tent-like booths with branches for roofs). We truly and joyfully celebrate that God forgives His people. We gather with family and friends. We eat and maybe even sleep in our sukkot, watching the stars overhead through the roof. We party and thank our dear God for His blessings and love.
And guess what? It is very likely that Yeshua was born on the first day of the feast of Tabernacles (which falls in September or October). Isn't this when we should celebrate His birth? Plus, when we look to God's future fulfillment of the fall feasts, we find that the feast of Trumpets represents Yeshua's return, the Day of Atonements represents the day of judgment, and the feast of Tabernacles represents the wedding feast of Yeshua and His bride (Israel).
Compare this with Christmas and we find it a poor substitute for the celebrations that God has commanded in His Word. God wants us to celebrate, but let's celebrate what He has provided for us!
Sunday, September 13, 2015
Will it Be Today?
Matthew 24:27 (KJV)
27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Matthew 24:30-31 (KJV)
30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Matthew 24:36 (KJV)
36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
Matthew 24:42 (KJV)
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 (KJV)
16 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:
17 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.
Could this be the day in which Yeshua returns?
Devout believers have been patiently (or maybe not so patiently) waiting for His return since His ascension back into Heaven roughly 2000 years ago. What, exactly, are we expecting to see? Some of the sights and sounds that will accompany His return are:
Hearing a shout from the archangel.
Hearing a trumpet from God.
Seeing Yeshua coming from the clouds.
Seeing dead believers rising up to the clouds.
Seeing alive believers rising up to the clouds.
Won't this be amazing!
The difficult part is that we do have to wait for this event. Matthew 24:42 says that we are to "watch." This indicates that we are to actively be on the lookout for Yeshua's return. Yet, no one knows the day or hour when this will happen as it says in Matthew 24:36 and 42. But do we have any clues?
Did you know that God's calendar presents us with some very strong evidence? The Bible points to Yeshua's birth being on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Succot). Yeshua was crucified on Passover. He was in the grave during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. He rose from the dead on the Feast of First Fruits and the Holy Spirit was given on the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot). However, there is no event that corresponds to the Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah or Rosh Hashanah) or the Feast of Atonement (Yom Kippur),
Doesn't it seem likely that these feasts will also be accompanied by events? And did you notice that the name of the next feast is the Feast of Trumpets? (Actually in Hebrew, it is called the Day of Blowing.) Oddly, enough, there is a Jewish idiom that describes that day as "The day that no man knows." This has to do with the fact that the feast day cannot really be known until the first sliver of the moon appears to indicate that the seventh month of the Biblical year has arrived. That first day of the seventh month is the Feast of Trumpets.
Leviticus 23:23-25 (KJV)
23 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
25 Ye shall do no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
If God is consistent something wonderful will happen on a Feast of Trumpets. Yeshua will return! Will it be this year? We don't know, but it behooves us to be watching!
(Many who follow the traditional Jewish calendar will begin celebrating Yom Teruah this evening, Sunday, September 13, 2015. Others wait for the moon's appearance in Jerusalem. That could place the beginning at sundown on September 14 or 15th.)
27 For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Matthew 24:30-31 (KJV)
30 And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
31 And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.
Matthew 24:36 (KJV)
36 But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
Matthew 24:42 (KJV)
42 Watch therefore: for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
1 Thessalonians 4:16-17 (KJV)
16 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:
17 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.
Could this be the day in which Yeshua returns?
Devout believers have been patiently (or maybe not so patiently) waiting for His return since His ascension back into Heaven roughly 2000 years ago. What, exactly, are we expecting to see? Some of the sights and sounds that will accompany His return are:
Hearing a shout from the archangel.
Hearing a trumpet from God.
Seeing Yeshua coming from the clouds.
Seeing dead believers rising up to the clouds.
Seeing alive believers rising up to the clouds.
Won't this be amazing!
The difficult part is that we do have to wait for this event. Matthew 24:42 says that we are to "watch." This indicates that we are to actively be on the lookout for Yeshua's return. Yet, no one knows the day or hour when this will happen as it says in Matthew 24:36 and 42. But do we have any clues?
Did you know that God's calendar presents us with some very strong evidence? The Bible points to Yeshua's birth being on the first day of the Feast of Tabernacles (Succot). Yeshua was crucified on Passover. He was in the grave during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. He rose from the dead on the Feast of First Fruits and the Holy Spirit was given on the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot). However, there is no event that corresponds to the Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah or Rosh Hashanah) or the Feast of Atonement (Yom Kippur),
Doesn't it seem likely that these feasts will also be accompanied by events? And did you notice that the name of the next feast is the Feast of Trumpets? (Actually in Hebrew, it is called the Day of Blowing.) Oddly, enough, there is a Jewish idiom that describes that day as "The day that no man knows." This has to do with the fact that the feast day cannot really be known until the first sliver of the moon appears to indicate that the seventh month of the Biblical year has arrived. That first day of the seventh month is the Feast of Trumpets.
Leviticus 23:23-25 (KJV)
23 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
25 Ye shall do no servile work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
If God is consistent something wonderful will happen on a Feast of Trumpets. Yeshua will return! Will it be this year? We don't know, but it behooves us to be watching!
(Many who follow the traditional Jewish calendar will begin celebrating Yom Teruah this evening, Sunday, September 13, 2015. Others wait for the moon's appearance in Jerusalem. That could place the beginning at sundown on September 14 or 15th.)
Sunday, August 23, 2015
Do Not Add or Subtract!
Deuteronomy 4:2 (KJV)
2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.
Deuteronomy 12:32 (KJV)
32 What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.
Proverbs 30:6 (KJV)
6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
Revelation 22:18-19 (KJV)
18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
The Bible contains several warnings against adding to or subtracting from the Words of God. Yet every time a pastor, teacher, theologian, or others teach that we no longer have to observe the Torah, they are adding to and subtracting from the Word of God.
What reasons could there be to negate the above verses? Some claim that God, Himself, has changed the Word. However, God must hold Himself to the same standard or He is a liar and we would never be able to count on His Word as truth. Some say that the verses are time related. In essence they teach that we aren't to change any wording in the Torah, but it doesn't mean that the rules after the Torah can't change. This makes sense to them since there were books of the Bible written after the Torah. But this logic destroys the context of the warnings. The words themselves, or the time when the warnings were written are not as important as what they simply are telling us. We are not to add to or subtract from the instructions of God. If your theology teaches that the New Testament ends the Old Testament's requirements your theology has misunderstood the New Testament and is adding to and subtracting from the Bible.
This means that whatever God has commanded cannot change. We find this truth stated in another way in the following verses.
Genesis 13:15 (KJV)
15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
Israel has been granted their land forever.
Exodus 12:14 (KJV)
14 And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.
Passover is to be observed forever by the children of God.
Leviticus 23:14 (KJV)
14 And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
The feast of First Fruits is to be observed forever by the children of God.
And many more!!!
If we claim to be believers in Yeshua we cannot pick and choose from the Bible. If we do we are violating the warnings of Deuteronomy, Proverbs, and Revelation. We are adding to and subtracting from the very Word of God.
2 Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you.
Deuteronomy 12:32 (KJV)
32 What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.
Proverbs 30:6 (KJV)
6 Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.
Revelation 22:18-19 (KJV)
18 For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.
The Bible contains several warnings against adding to or subtracting from the Words of God. Yet every time a pastor, teacher, theologian, or others teach that we no longer have to observe the Torah, they are adding to and subtracting from the Word of God.
What reasons could there be to negate the above verses? Some claim that God, Himself, has changed the Word. However, God must hold Himself to the same standard or He is a liar and we would never be able to count on His Word as truth. Some say that the verses are time related. In essence they teach that we aren't to change any wording in the Torah, but it doesn't mean that the rules after the Torah can't change. This makes sense to them since there were books of the Bible written after the Torah. But this logic destroys the context of the warnings. The words themselves, or the time when the warnings were written are not as important as what they simply are telling us. We are not to add to or subtract from the instructions of God. If your theology teaches that the New Testament ends the Old Testament's requirements your theology has misunderstood the New Testament and is adding to and subtracting from the Bible.
This means that whatever God has commanded cannot change. We find this truth stated in another way in the following verses.
Genesis 13:15 (KJV)
15 For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever.
Israel has been granted their land forever.
Exodus 12:14 (KJV)
14 And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.
Passover is to be observed forever by the children of God.
Leviticus 23:14 (KJV)
14 And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
The feast of First Fruits is to be observed forever by the children of God.
And many more!!!
If we claim to be believers in Yeshua we cannot pick and choose from the Bible. If we do we are violating the warnings of Deuteronomy, Proverbs, and Revelation. We are adding to and subtracting from the very Word of God.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
The Resurrection of Yeshua and First Fruits
On this coming Sunday Christians around the world will celebrate Easter. This is in commemoration of Yeshua's resurrection from the dead. Unfortunately, this date is not chosen based on Scripture, but rather on a formula standardized in the fourth century that determined Easter was to be celebrated on the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after the vernal equinox. In Scripture we read nothing about the vernal equinox or full moon, instead Yeshua's resurrection is based on when Passover and the Feast of First Fruits occur.
Leviticus 23:5-6 (KJV)
5 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S passover.
6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.
The first month in the Jewish calendar begins on the new moon of Nisan which occurs sometime in March or April. This year it began on the evening of March 12, 2013. The 14th day corresponded to March 25, 2013. On that evening Jews and Torah observant Christians around the world began the celebration of Passover with a seder meal.
Prior to the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. the Passover lambs were slaughtered on the 14th of Nisan. It was on this date that Yeshua was crucified as our once and for all Passover lamb. If Christians were to commemorate Yeshua's crucifixion, the anniversary was on March 25th of this year. How many Christians marked this date? How many erroneously will be going to "Good Friday" services on March 29th?
Leviticus 23:10-11 (KJV)
10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:
11 And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.
These verses of Leviticus describe the Feast of Firstfruits. It occurs on the morrow after the sabbath during Passover (Unleavened Bread). It is very likely that Yeshua rose from the dead on the day of Firstfruits.
1 Corinthians 15:20 (KJV)
20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
But how many Christians celebrate the Feast of Firstfruits?
Besides Christians celebrating the death and resurrection of Yeshua on incorrect dates, the overriding problem with Easter is its pagan origins. The name "Easter" comes from "Eastre" the Teutonic goddess of spring, although from ancient times spring has been celebrated by pagans. When the religious leaders wanted to Christianize the pagans, their traditions were absorbed in Christian practices to make the transition more comfortable and acceptable. This blending of the impure with the holy is detested by God and should never have been done, because it has left sincere and devoted Christians guilty of celebrating pagan feasts.
2 Corinthians 6:14 (KJV)
14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
2 Corinthians 6:17 (KJV)
17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
And no amount of focusing on the correct interpretations of Yeshua's death and resurrection can make a pagan holiday Christian. If Christians want to honor Yeshua's death and resurrection we need to follow the proscription of Scripture rather than pagan traditions. Let us remember Passover.
Leviticus 23:5-6 (KJV)
5 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S passover.
6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.
The first month in the Jewish calendar begins on the new moon of Nisan which occurs sometime in March or April. This year it began on the evening of March 12, 2013. The 14th day corresponded to March 25, 2013. On that evening Jews and Torah observant Christians around the world began the celebration of Passover with a seder meal.
Prior to the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. the Passover lambs were slaughtered on the 14th of Nisan. It was on this date that Yeshua was crucified as our once and for all Passover lamb. If Christians were to commemorate Yeshua's crucifixion, the anniversary was on March 25th of this year. How many Christians marked this date? How many erroneously will be going to "Good Friday" services on March 29th?
Leviticus 23:10-11 (KJV)
10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:
11 And he shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it.
These verses of Leviticus describe the Feast of Firstfruits. It occurs on the morrow after the sabbath during Passover (Unleavened Bread). It is very likely that Yeshua rose from the dead on the day of Firstfruits.
1 Corinthians 15:20 (KJV)
20 But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
But how many Christians celebrate the Feast of Firstfruits?
Besides Christians celebrating the death and resurrection of Yeshua on incorrect dates, the overriding problem with Easter is its pagan origins. The name "Easter" comes from "Eastre" the Teutonic goddess of spring, although from ancient times spring has been celebrated by pagans. When the religious leaders wanted to Christianize the pagans, their traditions were absorbed in Christian practices to make the transition more comfortable and acceptable. This blending of the impure with the holy is detested by God and should never have been done, because it has left sincere and devoted Christians guilty of celebrating pagan feasts.
2 Corinthians 6:14 (KJV)
14 Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?
2 Corinthians 6:17 (KJV)
17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
And no amount of focusing on the correct interpretations of Yeshua's death and resurrection can make a pagan holiday Christian. If Christians want to honor Yeshua's death and resurrection we need to follow the proscription of Scripture rather than pagan traditions. Let us remember Passover.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)