CHAPTER TWO:
THE FEAST DAYS OF ISRAEL:
GOD'S PROPHETIC CALENDAR
"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.23:2
God gave the Israelites specific feast days called "the feasts of the LORD...these are my feasts. " From his statement we can understand that Israel had nothing to do with selecting these feast days. They are times designated by God to be observed by Israel.
With each feast God gave precise instructions as to how and when it would be observed. Although these feast days were celebrated by Israel, their true significance and importance transcends the entire Old Testament period. All of the Old Testament feasts point to Jesus. Jesus said, "think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy but to fulfill. " Matt.5:17
Writings in the Psalms tell us that God was not content with sacrifices of animals but was looking forward to a more perfect sacrifice who would fulfill the law's requirements in every detail. Jesus would be that perfect sacrifice.
"Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire; mine ears hast thou opened: burnt offering and sin offering hast thou not required.
Then said I, Lo, I come: in the volume of the book it
is written of me,
I delight to do thy will, 0 my God: yea, thy law is within my heart." Ps. 40:6-8
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The first feast, Passover, was not fulfilled until 53 days before the Church was born. Although the children of Israel killed a Passover lamb each year the feast was celebrated, Jesus himself fulfilled the feast by becoming the true lamb of God and died on the cross for the sins of the world.
Before us are four feast days: Passover, Unleavened Bread, Sheaf Waving, and the Feast of Weeks. As we look at these feasts we shall see that all of them were fulfilled in
every detail. All of these feasts are associated with the first month of Israel's sacred year. Although the feast of Weeks takes place in the third month, it is actually an extension of the Waving of the Sheaf.
This segment of the book is crucial to our study because by examining God's attention to detail in fulfilling the earlier feasts, we shall gain a deeper understanding and
appreciation of how the feasts of the seventh sacred month will be fulfilled in the future.
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PASSOVER: A FEAST OF DELIVERANCE
On the night Israel left Egypt, God instituted the Feast of the Passover or Pesach. It commemorate the night the death angel passed through the land of Egypt killing the firstborn in every household where there was no blood splattered on the doorpost. Every house where the angel found the blood was "passed over."
God gave Moses explicit instructions regarding the observance of the day. In so doing, God also changed the order of the months of the year with respect to his people, Israel. This is a key element in determining the year of the Rapture. We cannot properly understand God's times unless we are governed by his calendar which is also the Hebrew calendar.
"And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying,
This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year
to you. "
Ex.12:1&2
Another passage in Exodus lets us know what month it was.
"This day ye came out in the month Abib."
Ex.l3:4
As a result of this ordinance the Hebrew calendar is now reckoned two ways: the civil year and the sacred year. On the civil calendar, Nisan is the seventh month.
Because the Hebrew calendar is based on the movement of the moon, their month of Nisan will appear at various times on our Gregorian calendar. It answers most closely to the Gregorian month of April but it may also cover portions of March or May.
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"Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, in the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb... " Ex.12:3
God, working from detailed plans that were laid in eternity past, has designated a particular day for their New Testament fulfillment. The day of fulfillment cannot be
just any day; no more that one can buy an airline ticket for any flight on any airline leaving on just any day.
"Now the sojourning of the children of Israel, who dwelt in Egypt, wasfour hundred and thirty years." Ex.12:41
A common misconception is that the children of Israel were slaves in Egypt for 430 years. The text does not say that. The 430 year period encompasses the entire length of the sojourning years and takes us back to when Abraham first entered Canaan.
Abraham was 75 years old when he entered Canaan. (Gen.12:4). He died when he was 175 (Gen.25:7), therefore, he lived in Canaan for 100 years. Isaac lived his entire life in Canaan and died when he was 180 years old. (Gen.35:28) If we subtract the years that Abraham and Isaac lived together in Canaan, 75 years, the combined time of Abraham and Isaac's years in Canaan total 205 years. Isaac was 60 years old when Jacob was born
(Gen.25:26). Subtracting 60 years from Isaac's 180 years, Jacob lived in Canaan with Isaac for 120 years. Jacob went to Egypt when he was 130 years old (Gen.46:9) which
means he lived in Canaan without Isaac for ten years. Adding the 10 years to 205, the total years that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob spent in Canaan were 215 years, exactly half of the 430 years of their time of sojourning. Consequently, the children of Israel could not have been
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slaves in Egypt longer than 215 years, actually less, depending upon when the new Pharaoh enslaved them.
Looking at a passage in Exodus 12:40 we can determine the exact day that Abraham entered Canaan.
"And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, even the selfsame day it came to pass, that all the hosts of the Lord went out from Egypt."
Because we are told that the children of Israel came out of Egypt "even the selfsame day" after the completion of the 430 year period, we know that Abraham began his sojourn in Canaan on the fifteenth day of Nisan (Gen.12:4-5).
God's faithfulness to time and his absolute control over events on this earth are the threads that weave faith in his word. These facts let us know that nothing is written
on his calendar by chance and that every act of God is carefully orchestrated. If God kept his commitments to Israel on their exact day you can be sure that he will not delay his promise to snatch the Church out of this earth!
The Passover feast as well as all of the other major feast days in the Old Testament are mere shadows and types of things to come. We know that a shadow is cast by something tangible. Passover was not instituted by God merely as a celebration of Israel's deliverance, its ultimate fulfillment lies in the loving act of Jesus as the Lamb of God whose shed blood would set an entire world free from the bondage of sin. The true fulfillment of Passover came 1,523 years later to the very day! Let's go back to Exodus 12 and pick up another detail to see just how fully Jesus fulfilled the ordinance of Passover.
"Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, in the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house. " Ex.l2:3
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"And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening." Ex.l2:6
The Passover lamb was to be selected on the tenth day of the month. It was nourished until the fourteenth day when it would be killed in the evening or, better translated, between the evenings. The Jews recognized two evenings, 3:00 P.M. and 6:00 P.M. The Mishnah allowed the killing of the lamb to take place anytime between the noon hour and 6:00P.M.
Jesus fulfilled the Passover in every detail but here again we find Satan creeping in and altering the truth of the details of that precise fulfillment. Around the world, Christianity celebrates Passion Week beginning on Palm Sunday when Jesus was supposed to have made his triumphant entry. Good Friday memorializes the day of the crucifixion and Easter Sunday celebrates the resurrection. The scriptures, however, render all of those days as incorrect. Satan saw an opportunity to mix the pagan doctrines of Babylon with the truth of scripture and seized the moment!
In the year Jesus died, he entered into Jerusalem on Saturday, not Sunday. Because of the short distance of his trip, he did not violate Sabbath day rules regarding travel. On that day, which was the tenth day of the month, the Jews as a nation unknowingly selected the Lamb of God when they spread palm leaves and garments in his path while crying Hosannah, thus fulfilling the law on the exact day!
"And the multitudes that went before, and that followed, cried, saying, Hosannah to the son of David: Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord; Hosannah in the highest.” Mt.21:9
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The meaning of their cry is "help or save now." It was the same cry that was uttered for seven days during the Feast of Tabernacles as they marched around the altar with palm branches. Those who honored Jesus that day expected him to deliver their nation from the iron rule of the Roman Empire.
A word here about Jesus' triumphant entry into Jerusalem is in order. It is often called a "triumphant" entry. The entry was anything but triumphant. Jesus entered riding on an ass, a king's beast of peace. Jesus had been rejected by the nation at large and in particular by its religious leaders for the past three and one-half years. He was making one last offer of God's peace to Israel which they could receive only by believing on him as the Messiah. He was not smiling, shaking hands and proclaiming victory as he entered. He went into Jerusalem "lowly." (Zec.9:9) He was depressed in his mind and spirit because his own people rejected his message of peace and salvation. Jesus' pain ran deep because his people possessed the oracles of God which contained the Messianic prophecies. The leaders knew who he was and with that knowledge, rejected him. Jesus entered into Jerusalem knowing that he would be crucified four days later, precisely as the law demanded!
If we accept the traditional Palm Sunday as the day when the sacrificial lamb of God was selected, Jesus should have been killed four days later which would be Thursday. To teach that Jesus died on Friday violates the four day ordinance.
According to God's directions in the Law of Moses, the lamb was to be killed on the fourteenth day of the month. Jesus fulfilled that detail by hanging on the cross four days later. Four days from Saturday is Wednesday. He was crucified not on Friday but on Wednesday.
Jesus said that he would be in the grave three days and three nights. Understanding
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how meticulous God is about exact days, he did not mean a part of three different days, but three whole days and three whole nights or 72 hours. Here I acknowledge my father Bishop G. Grady Benton. His diligence in seeking and proclaiming the truth of the Wednesday crucifixion at a time when very few were proclaiming that scriptural truth has inspired me to delve into all of the feast days in search of their future fulfillment.
Mark 15:34 gives the time of Jesus' death as after 3:00 p.m. in the afternoon. He died leaving sufficient time for Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea to anoint, wrap and bury his body before the Sabbath of Passover. Jesus fulfilled the law and died "between the evenings." Being crucified and buried on Wednesday, the preparation day, Thursday at the same time would be one day; Friday at the same time, two days; Saturday at the same time, three days. The resurrection occurred sometime after 3:00 p.m. and before 6:00 p.m. in the evening on Saturday. When the women went to the tomb early in the morning of the first day of the week, their earliest opportunity, the angel announced that he is already risen. He did not get up that morning, he had been up since late Saturday evening. The great earthquake early Sunday records the time of the moving of the stone, not the resurrection (Matt. 28: 1&2).
The traditional Easter sunrise service did not commence with the resurrection of Jesus, it was observed a few thousand years earlier in Babylon. In Satan's attempt to merge Christianity with pagan Babylonianism, he introduced Easter sunrise service to the Church. The name Easter is a variation of Ishtar, the Babylonian queen of heaven. Jeremiah condemned Israel for offering cakes to her (Jer. 7:18). Legend has her son Tammuz being killed by a wild animal and miraculously resurrected. The legend is a lie. Ezekiel wrote about women weeping for Tammuz for forty days which is still celebrated by some religions as
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the Lenten season (Eze.8:14). Tammuz' father is said to be none other than Nimrod (Gen.10:8) known throughout the Old Testament as the deity Baal or the sun god. The Church would be wiser to observe a Saturday afternoon resurrection memorial service as opposed to a Sunday sunrise service.
We are told in I Corinthians 5:7 that "Christ our passover is sacrificed for us." Paul's letter to the Hebrews admonished them to abandon the Old Testament sacrifices which could never take away sin and cleave to Jesus who offered himself up once as the passover lamb for the sins of the world.
Again, God is working from detailed plans. The feast day of Passover was inaugurated to serve as a clock and calendar for these last days and all of the remaining feast days will likewise be fulfilled at their appointed times.
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THE FEAST OF UNLEAVENED BREAD:
GOD'S GUARANTEE OF SALVATION
Immediately following the Passover meal, the Feast of Unleavened Bread commenced on the fifteenth day of the month and lasted until the twenty-first day. Israel left Egypt on the fifteenth day. The scope of this book will not allow me to go into all of the wonderful details associated with this feast such as the daily sacrifices and their
contents, all of which displayed the character of Christ. A personal study of those details will result in a deep settled confidence in God's saving ability.
This feast is an extension of Passover because Israel ate unleavened bread and the lamb on the evening of the 14th. The lamb atoned for their sins and eating the unleavened bread brought the worshipper into a realm of fellowship and communion with God. The last part of the Passover meal consisted of bitter herbs. Allow me to focus on the bitter herbs for a moment before considering the significance of the bread.
The bitter herbs are said to represent the bitterness of Israel's slavery in Egypt. That is correct but it also encompasses more than that. We have already looked at how the 430 year prophecy to Abraham took in the sojourning of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob before Israel grew to nation status. When Pharaoh met Jacob he asked him how old he was. Jacob told Pharaoh that his days were ''few" (130 years old) and ''full of evil." Jacob had endured a hard life and his life is a fair representation of the sojourn of the true Church on this earth.
There is very little preaching today about the suffering aspect of discipleship. I believe the suffering message diminished with the onset of the current blessing message. Jesus preached a way of suffering. He said, "If any man be my disciple, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me." Lk. 9:23 The badge of discipleship is a cross, an
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emblem of suffering. That element is noticeably missing in this Church age. Paul spoke of knowing Christ in the ''fellowship of his sufferings." Phil. 3:10. The bitter herbs were the last part of the meal to be consumed before leaving Egypt because they represent not so much what had already happened but that which was to come.
Regarding the bread, leaven is always depicted in scripture as a type of sin, corruption, or evil. Jesus warned his disciples to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, referring to the corruptive ingredient in their doctrine. In one of the parables of the kingdom, a woman is shown hiding leaven in three measures of meal (Matt. 13:33). That parable does not teach the all pervading influence of the gospel as some teach, but rather the all-pervasive corruption that results when just a little bit of false doctrine is added to the Truth.
Naturally, unleavened bread represents the absence of sin. God commanded Moses to instruct the children of Israel to eat unleavened bread during the meal.
"And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs shall they eat it." Ex. 12:8
Salvation and sin cannot coexist. This presents a problem because man is sinful by nature. To meet his standards of righteousness, God eliminated sin by establishing the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This sinless state has nothing whatsoever to do with the ability of the worshipper, it is the result of faith in God's word. Anyone who, by faith, ate unleavened bread for seven days would be reckoned sinless, even though in reality they were not. As in the sacrifice of Abel, God testified of the gift he brought but he said nothing about any works of righteousness Abel himself performed (Heb.11:4). So it is with those who ate unleavened bread, they were counted as sinless because they ate the bread,
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not because of anything having to do with their own performance of righteousness. God actually forced Israel into a sinless state by depriving them of the opportunity to leaven their bread:
"And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for themselves any victuals." Ex.12:39
Given the time, Israel would have leavened their bread. They ignored Moses' commandment to put all leaven out of their houses that night. It was not a lack of leaven that kept them from leavening their bread, they lacked the opportunity to use the leaven they had. The flesh is in constant violation of the law of God. Unleavened bread was just as nourishing as leavened bread but its taste did not appeal to the flesh's appetite.
The gospel aspect of the leaven incident should teach us that our sinless condition is accomplished only by the execution of God's power to override our natural bent toward sin. We are not former sinners who were saved by grace, we are present sinners being saved by grace and grace alone. Given the opportunity, the flesh will revert to leaven every time.
New Testament salvation is a salvation guaranteed by God himself. God incorporated a fail-safe mechanism into the plan of salvation and he will have a sinless church in spite of itself. Like Israel that night, the Church has righteousness bestowed upon it because its founder Jesus Christ is sinless. As Paul wrote, ''your life is hid in Christ with God." Col. 3:3
The Feast of Unleavened Bread continued for seven days. When we looked at the feast of Passover we were able to detail each segment and how each was fulfilled by Christ on their particular day. The seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread do not provide
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us with a day by day New Testament fulfillment. If it did, it would imply that Christ was sin-free for seven days and only after his death on the cross. We know that is absurd. Jesus lived his entire life free from sin. That's why he alone could stand in as a substitute for sinners. Therefore, the seven day period of Unleavened Bread represents a complete period of time and it was fulfilled by Jesus living a complete lifetime of sinless perfection.
Because Jesus is the head of all things to the Church, including its state of sinlessness, all seven ages of the Church may enjoy the blessing in Christ of being counted free from sin. Jesus said,
"Upon this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." (Ma.16:18)
We know that not everyone in the professing Church belongs to Christ because long ago Satan sowed tares among the true seed (Matt.13:25). Yet, Jesus stated that his Church cannot be destroyed by the forces of Satan and neither will it succumb to the effects of sin. Though the Church has sin within its professing ranks, it has been recognized by God as being unleavened throughout its history and will continue to be so during its few remaining months on earth.
Unfortunately, many believers expect to be raptured to heaven based upon their ability to live sin-free. That idea is based on the following scripture:
"That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish." Eph.5:27
For many years I have heard it preached that a believer must live a life that is spotless, wrinkle-free, and without blemish. That should certainly be every believer's objective but God's word clearly demonstrates that Jesus had to die for the sins of the world because of
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the very fact that man could not accomplish that feat. To those who think they can, God gave his law in order to prevent them from bragging about their self-righteousness. The law of God pronounced the entire world guilty before God (Ro.3:19). The flesh is inherently sinful and cannot clean itself up. What the above verse is saying is that he will present to himself a glorious church.
While on this earth in this flesh every member of the Church is full of spots, wrinkles and blemishes. After it is raptured and later presented to Christ in heaven, then it will truly be without spot, wrinkle, or blemish forever. God will accomplish that by himself. Again and again throughout God's word he states how his own arm brought salvation.
If Amazing Grace will be sung in heaven, then we will be able to sing it with the complete understanding that nothing but grace saved us.
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THE WAVE OFFERING:
A SURE PROMISE OF MORE TO FOLLOW
"And the Lord spake unto Moses saying,
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:
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." Lev.23:9-11
This passage introduces us to the Wave Offering or the Sheaf of Firstfruits. The text tells us that this offering would not begin until they had entered the land of Canaan and experienced their first harvest. Like the other special times in the Old Testament, this one too, has its fulfillment in Christ Jesus. I omitted verses 12-14 not because they
are not important but, again, because they are not the focal point of this book.
The firstfruits of the harvest were presented to the priest and then waved before the Lord. By giving God the firstfruits of their harvest they were acknowledging that everything given to them came from God and that all subsequent fruit was dedicated to him. They were also telling God that there would be more to come when the full harvest was reaped. In the resurrection chapter of I Corinthians we are told that Christ is the ''firstfruits of them that slept. "
"But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept."
I Cor.15:20
In this case, Jesus is the first of those who rose from the grave. After his resurrection he made several appearances on the first day of the week. The appearance to Mary Magdalene
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near the tomb gives us some insight as to when Jesus literally fulfilled the Old Testament type of the wave offering.
"Jesus saith unto her, touch me not: for I am not yet ascended to my Father." Jn.20:17
Jesus wasn't simply forbidding Mary to touch him, he stopped her from clinging to him. She was thrilled to see Jesus alive and she wanted to hold onto him and not let him out of her sight. Jesus told her that he had not ascended to his father. What was the purpose of that ascension? It was to present himself as a sheaf of wave offering to God representing the firstfruits of those who would later be resurrected. Jesus ascended into heaven to the Father on that very day. Why on that day? Because the Law commanded that it be presented on the morrow after the Sabbath. The date was the 18th of Nisan, the first day of the week.
Satan understood the full significance of this offering and the ramifications of its fulfillment by Jesus. Because of that, Satan and all of his associates in the heavens attempted to prevent Jesus from accomplishing that goal. They were not successful as we are told in Colossians:
"And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. " Col. 2:15
These are the same principalities and powers spoken of in Ephesians 6:12. Jesus literally stripped from himself those demon principalities and powers that sought to grab hold of him to prevent him from completing this final phase of redemption. They tried to arrest him in the heavens just like the prince of Persia detained Gabriel when he went through
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their domain with a message to Daniel. The Church would have lost all benefits of the death and resurrection of Christ if he had not “waved” himself as an offering of firstfruits before God.
The significance of the Wave Offering is further emphasized when Jesus related his death to that of a corn of wheat falling into the ground:
"Verily, verily, I say unto you, except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it abideth alone: but if it die, it bringeth forth much fruit." Jn.12:24
Jesus was that corn of wheat. Joseph Seiss brings out this same truth in his book, The Gospel In the Stars. In the constellation of Virgo, the brightest star is not in the virgin herself but it is in the Spica, the corn of wheat that the virgin is holding. The message in the constellation of Virgo elevates the Son above the mother just as the scriptures do. That corn of wheat had to die in order that it might bring forth much fruit.
It was necessary for Jesus to die because without his death our spiritual birth could not happen. Through his death much fruit is harvested. By appearing in the presence of God as an offering of firstfruits, Jesus solidified the future resurrection of all who had died or would die in the faith. If he had not performed that offering, our hope of both the resurrection and the Rapture would be compromised. Because he did die, we
can be sure that we too will be caught up to meet the Lord in the air whether we are alive or dead at the time of the "catching away."
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THE FEAST OF WEEKS:
THE BIRTH OF THE CHURCH/
THE BEGINNING OF THE LAST DAYS
"And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete;
Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the Lord.
Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the Lord." Lev.23:15-17
Again, when God ordained this feast in Israel, he was looking ahead to the day of its fulfillment. The Church was brought into existence on the first occurrence of that feast day after the resurrection. The Greek name for this day is called Pentecost which means fifty. This feast occurred fifty days after the waving of the sheaf of firstfruits. It should be clear by now that God was working from a detailed blueprint that has been and will continue to be followed.
Too often I hear comments suggesting that God waits until circumstances and conditions on earth are set before implementing his plans. That idea is incorrect. The expression "in the fullness of time" has to do with God's calendar and not earthly conditions.
Some of God's plans have their fulfillment exclusively in the Church, and some are reserved solely for Israel. As noted, the fulfillment of the Feast of Weeks focuses on the Church. Although the original membership of the Church consisted entirely of Jews, the Church was a new and separate entity altogether, distinct from the nation of Israel. Prophecy students come to erroneous conclusions when they attempt to combine
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the promises made to the Church with those made to Israel.
The scriptures are detailed in giving us the New Testament time this feast day was fulfilled:
"To whom he also shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God." Acts 1:3
God instructed Moses to number seven sabbaths from the day of the waving of firstfruits plus an additional day; the total being fifty days. Jesus ascended into heaven on the fortieth day. The apostles and disciples were commanded to wait in Jerusalem until they received the promise of the Father which was the Holy Ghost.
"...but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.
For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence."
Acts 2:4&5
The wait in Jerusalem lasted ten days.
"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
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The Church was born. The Feast of Weeks was fulfilled "when the day of Pentecost was fully come. " There are no variables in the fulfillment of the feast days. I realize I am bordering on redundancy in repeating that fact but it is essential that it be understood because so many are under the impression that the day of the Rapture is a variable day. We shall see that its date too, is as fixed as all of the other feast day fulfillments.
When Jesus commanded the apostles to wait in Jerusalem, they asked him if he would restore the kingdom to Israel when the ''promise of the Father" came. The answer Jesus gave at this time has been taken by many to mean that we cannot know the time of the Rapture.
"...it is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power. " Acts 2:7
It is incongruous for God to put lights in the heavens for signs; to give written prophecies stating specific times; to establish the calendar of feast days and then tell his followers that they cannot know the times or the seasons of his return!
Jesus' answer to his apostles is a response to their question about the time of the restoration of the kingdom of Israel and that is all. Had they listened carefully to the answer of a previous question they asked, they would not have asked the question now before us. Before his death Jesus told them that the Temple was going to be destroyed. "There shall not be left here one stone upon another, that shall not be thrown down." Since that had not happened yet, it should have been clear to the apostles that Israel's restoration as a kingdom would not be for quite a while. If Jesus, at that time, had told them that Israel would not be restored as a nation for almost 2000 years, it would have devastated them. When he referred to the "times and seasons," plural, Jesus was telling them that there are some
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times and seasons of which they would not be told. We already looked at one of those events: the passing away of the heavens and the earth.
When it suited God's purpose, he would again restore Israel but he chose to restrict the knowledge of that time and season to himself. In 1948 when Israel was restored as a nation again, the date became very significant in marking off the times of last days events.
Also, the formation of the Church is one of those times and seasons that the Father did not reveal to any of the prophets. It was a new work entirely, the revelation of a mystery. Daniel's prophecy recorded the crucifixion of Christ (Dan. 9:26) and then moved right along into the final seven years. Had the prophecy of Daniel gone uninterrupted, the future thousand year millennium would have ended one thousand years ago. God knew that he would interrupt the prophecy of Daniel with the creation of the Church but he was silent on the issue. The actual period of time for the saving of the Gentiles was another time and season that the Father kept secret.
I referred earlier to the "gap" theory. It is an interruption in the flow of Daniel's prophecy. Jesus was aware of that gap when he read the scripture in the synagogue of his home town. Luke 4:16-20 records the passage that Jesus read from the writings of Isaiah. Comparing Luke's text with Isaiah's we see that Jesus stopped reading in the middle of the sentence, "to preach the acceptable year of the Lord .. " (Isa. 61:2) Isaiah's writing continued with "...and the day of the vengeance of our God. " Jesus would not fulfill that portion of Isaiah until his second coming, therefore the gap in time. That gap is filled with the birth of the Church and the ''grafting in" of the Gentiles.
The description of the event on the day of Pentecost sounds like the noise of a very good time. That's exactly the way it is described in Deuteronomy:
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"Seven weeks shalt thou number unto thee: begin to number the seven weeks from such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn.
And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the Lord thy God with a tribute of a freewill offering of thine hand, which thou shalt give unto the Lord thy God, according as the Lord thy God hath blessed thee:
And thou shalt rejoice before the Lord thy God, thou and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are among you, in the place which the Lord thy God hath chosen to place his name there.
And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt: and thou shalt observe and do these statutes. "
Deut. 16:9-12
This is a time of celebration and rejoicing. The grain harvest is complete. The grace of God allowed them to bring him "a tribute of a freewill offering" from their own hand. The offering would be in accordance with God's blessings to them.
It was an event open to all and as such it fully typified what the Church of Jesus should be. The Feast of Weeks allowed the family, the servants, the stranger, the cast-down and the cast-away to join in the celebration. If there is a place where there should be no room for prejudice, bigotry, or racism, it should be in the Church.
When the Pentecostal revival erupted in Los Angeles in 1906, it burst upon the city without respect for color, race, creed, education or reputation. Of course it wasn't long, just about three years, before Satan caused divisions along color lines. That division continues until this day and is one of the main reasons for the multitude of Pentecostal organizations in the world today.
Satan divided that movement initially using racism and then created further
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divisions by instigating doctrinal disputes that have nothing to do with basic salvation. The Pentecostals, like those of every God-ordained revival that had preceded theirs, began to organize the Church by adding their own by-laws, minute books, regulations, and traditions. History repeated itself in the Church for the seventh time and the revival died. The organized Church today is teaching that a great revival is about to break out in the Church again before the Rapture--they are in error. The last great revival already happened in 1906. I'll comment more on that later in the book.
On the day of the fulfillment of the Feast of Weeks the Holy Ghost came down from heaven and entered into the hearts of those present. We have now been born from above and are the children of the free. Egypt, the true type of the world, is no longer our home. We should celebrate that fact every time we gather together.
S.H. Kellogg spoke of this day as "...the spiritual ingathering of the firstfruits of the world's harvest, fifty days after the presentation of our Lord in resurrection, as the wave-sheaf of the firstfruits."
The Feast of Weeks marked the presentation of a "new meat (meal) offering unto the Lord (Lev.23:16)." As Christ presented himself to God as a wave offering of the sheaf of firstfruits, Pentecost presents to God the firstfruits of Christ's resurrection from the dead.
Israel was commanded to abstain from any servile work on that day. This is significant because those of us who are presented to God in connection with Pentecost are set free from the works of the law. On the day of Pentecost 3,000 souls were added to the Church. This is in marked contrast to the day when the law was given from Mt. Sinai and 3,000 souls were destroyed (Ex.32:28). Here is an example that shows God's use of numbers is not coincidental. They are used to show the vast difference between Law and Grace. The law could only condemn and kill. Under grace, works do not make a person
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acceptable to God; he or she is admitted by the blood of Jesus. Grace is a gift of God and its first manifestation in the New Testament Church brought new life.
"And ye shall offer with the bread seven lambs without blemish of the first year, and one young bullock, and two rams: they shall before a burnt offering unto the Lord..."
Lev.23:18
For the first time, this celebration of the Feast of Weeks after the resurrection of Christ did not include the sacrifices listed above because Jesus himself had already fulfilled the purpose of each of those offerings. Rather than presenting the blood of animals, we are now
instructed to present our bodies to God as a living sacrifice (Ro.12:1).
"Then ye shall sacrifice one kid of the goats for a sin offering, and two lambs of the first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings." Lev.23:19
Again, Jesus met all of those requirements. The result of his offering of himself on the cross is remission of sin and peace with God. It is no wonder that Paul opened and closed his epistles with the expression, "grace and peace be unto you." God can extend full grace to the Church because Christ fulfilled the purpose of the offering of goats and lambs. We can live in a relationship of peace with God because Christ himself Was sacrificed for our peace . It must never be forgotten that the Church stands on the merits of a blood sacrifice presented as a burnt offering to God.
Jesus not only fulfilled the requirements of the animal sacrifices, he also fulfilled the wave loaves that were baked of fine flour. He represents the best of that which is
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harvested from the earth. His righteous refinement was actually enhanced after his resurrection. Andrew Bonar states: "Even as Jesus, when raised from the tomb, was henceforth no more under the curse of sin, but was blessed in body, for his body was no longer weary...' and blessed in company, for no longer was he numbered among transgressors; and blessed in all his inheritance, for all power was given to him in heaven and in earth."
There is one important aspect of this Feast of Weeks that has a special fulfillment in the Church. In connection with the loaves of fine flour we are told, "they shall be baken with leaven." Throughout Leviticus leaven was prohibited in offerings made to God by fire but here we find a notable exception. Though Jesus fulfilled all of the offerings and ingredients associated with this feast day, the final fulfillment of that day centered upon born-again believers. We are not free from sin while we are in these bodies of flesh upon the earth. Sin still dwells in our members. Because of that fact, God graciously allowed leaven to be included in the offering on the day of Pentecost. The leaven still has its same significance, evil and corruption. But when Jesus comes to receive us to himself, he will then purge out every trace of leaven as he clothes us with our heavenly bodies.
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SUMMARY OF THE FEASTS
The four feasts that we have examined all occurred in the beginning of the sacred year. Passover was celebrated in the first month on the fourteenth day. On the fifteenth day of the same month was the Feast of Unleavened Bread, lasting until the 21st day of the month. In the same month, the Feast of Firstfruits and its associated Wave Offering was on the day following the Sabbath after Passover. The Feast of Weeks, actually the completion of the Feast of the Firstfruits, was fifty days after the waving of the sheaf of Firstfruits.
All of these feast days were fulfilled at the end of the period of Law or at the beginning of the Church Age, depending on how one wishes to view it.
Likewise, we shall see that the feasts of the seventh month will be fulfilled either at the end of the Church Age or during the 70th week of Daniel's prophecy. They include the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement and the Feast of Tabernacles. We will also look at the significance of the Sabbath Year and the Jubile Year. Both of those years are essential in determining the day of the Rapture.
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THE DAWNING OF A NEW ERA
God's creation of the Church officially marked the end of Judaism and the Old Testament economy of salvation. As you may know, the various sects of Judaism continued with their worship after God started the Church on the day of Pentecost. In fact, Judaism, in various forms, continues to this present day even though it is no longer recognized by God. God made that point clear when he allowed the Temple at Jerusalem to be destroyed in A.D. 70 according to Jesus' prophecy. Its destruction served as official word from God that the Old Testament priestly and sacrificial system had been suspended.
Jesus returned to heaven in A.D. 31 and the temple was destroyed 39 years later in A.D. 70. The 39 year interval between the two events is notable. The factors of 39 are 3 x 13. Three represents divine manifestation. The number 13 always represents rebellion. In essence, although Israel rejected the offering of the kingdom, God gave the nation an additional 39 years to reconsider.
Understand that the Old Testament prophesied that Christ would come with miracles. But after his departure the apostles continued showing signs, wonders and working miracles. After the temple was destroyed, God's official program of miracles ceased also. Even though God still works miracles today, they are not his official program.
Satan has moved into that territory also, duplicating most of God's signs, wonders, and miracles. Jannes and Jambres, mentioned in I Timothy 3:8 could not duplicate all of the miracles in Egypt but given time, Satan could have. He was unable to bring down fire at the showdown on Mt. Carmel but he has since acquired that ability and will display that feat through the Antichrist.
As the time of the Tribulation approaches, the Temple will be rebuilt and the priestly and sacrificial systems will be reinstated. I have always been perplexed by
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the reestablishment of the priesthood and sacrifices during the Tribulation but one must realize that both systems are unfinished business as far as Israel is concerned.
Throughout the book of Hebrews Paul warns the Jewish converts against going back under a system that is no longer recognized by God and to hold fast their profession of Jesus Christ their Savior.
The handwriting of the Jew's rejection of the gospel was already on the wall when Jesus gave the parable of the Sower. The Jews had been closing their eyes and ears to their Messiah's message throughout his ministry exactly as Isaiah had prophesied. (Isa 1:2-7) The reason that they missed the Messiah was not because they could not hear him or see his works, they missed him because they would not hear or see. They deliberately made themselves deaf and blind to the Messiah. The reason Jesus began speaking in parables was to keep them deaf and blind.
"Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:
For this people's heart is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes they have closed; lest at any time they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart and should be converted, and I should heal them."
Matt.13: 13-15
Around A.D. 63 the Apostle Paul officially announced the end of the offering of salvation to national Israel. When Paul made that announcement he referred to the same prophecy in Isaiah that Jesus used to condemn the Jews. These are Paul's words:
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"...Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers,
Saying, go unto this people, and say, hearing ye shall
hear and shall not understand, and seeing ye shall see and not perceive;
For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.
Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent to the Gentiles, and that they will hear it. "
Acts 28:25-28
After Paul's pronouncement, God turned fully to the Gentiles and began saving them en masse. Still, the Church has had a sprinkling of Jews within its ranks since the day of Pentecost and will continue to attract some believing Jews until it is raptured.
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