GOD'S ANNUAL HOLY DAYS
 
For accuracy recommended translations are Authorized King James Version or New King James Version.

 

Table of Contents  

 

The Holydays Show Us God's Plan and Schedule Here on Earth

How the Holydays are Prophetic of and Point to Jesus Christ
Dates for the Annual Holy Days (Holidays) in 2015

Keeping the Holydays at the Right Time and In the Right Spirit

 

These seven annual Holy Days show us God's plan and schedule here on earth. All these days are prophetic and point to Jesus Christ.

 

 

FEASTS OF THE LORD (Leviticus 23rd chapter)
 
Leviticus 23:4 " These are the feasts of the Lord ......" Please note very carefully that these are the feasts of the Lord. So they don't belong to any particular race or man made religion - they belong to God.

 

1.Passover (Leviticus 23:5)
2.Feast of Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:6-8)
3.Pentecost (Leviticus 23:15-16 , 21), also called Feast of First Fruits (Exodus 23:16)
4.Feast of Trumpets (Leviticus 23:24-25)
5.Day of Atonement (Leviticus 23:27-32)
6.Feast of Tabernacles (Leviticus 23:34-35)
7.Last Great Day (Leviticus 23:36)

 

There are references to these Holy Days throughout the Bible. Now let us study each one of them to find out where we are right now in God's schedule.
 

 

He was arrested in the evening of the Passover (after He and His disciples had celebrated the Passover, and ate the Passover meal), and died right on Passover day just before sunset, and prior to the annual Holy Day the First Day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (John 19:31-42).
 

 

 

The children of Israel were slaves of Pharaoh in Egypt. Pharaoh is symbolic of Satan. Egypt is symbolic of sin. They couldn't free themselves from Pharaoh's power by their own strength. God had to intervene and work miracles to liberate them.

 

Through Moses, God told the children of Israel to take lambs, and on the evening of the 14th day of the first month they were to kill them, and smear some of the blood on the side-frames of the doors. The lambs of course were prophetic and symbolic of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice for our sins. God then killed all the firstborn in Egypt, but He passed over the homes of the Israelites, who had the blood of the lamb on their doors. Pharaoh had to be forced into letting the people go (Exodus chapters 11-13).
 

 

 

 

Seven different eras of the true Church are listed in Revelation chapters 2 & 3 :

1.Ephesus (Revelation 2:1-7)
2.Smyrna (Revelation 2:8-11)
3.Pergamos (Revelation 2:12-17)
4.Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29)
5.Sardis (Revelation 3:1-6)
6.Philadelphia (Revelation 3:7-13)
7.Laodicea (Revelation 3:14-22)

 

 

It seems very clear these are listed in a chronological order. Ephesus era obviously consisted of the early Church - the original disciples, apostles and those who came after them in the early years. That era faded away and another arose and on and on it went through the ages.

 

 

WHERE ARE WE TODAY IN 2O15 IN GOD'S SCHEDULE ?  We are in the Pentecostal Period, where God is just working with the Church.  It is plain as day that we are in that period where God is just working with the Church, since the Feast of Trumpets (which is the Annual Holy Day right after Pentecost)  points to the return of Jesus Christ and the resurrection of the saints, and obviously this has not happened yet.  

 

The Philadelphia era of God's true church is described in Revelation 3:8 " .. for thou hast a little strength, and hast kept my word, and hast not denied my name."

 

 

 

 

New Heaven and a New Earth

 

After God's Plan for this earth (which the annual Holy Days point to) is done - God will create a new heaven and new earth.

 
Revelation 21:1 " And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea."
 
Rev.21:4 " And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow ,nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away."
 
Rev. 21: 5-7 " And He that sat upon the throne said, Behold I make all things new. And He said unto me, Write: for these words are true and faithful.
 
" And He said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely.
 
" He that overcomes shall inherit all things; and I will be his God, and he shall be my son. "
 

 

In God's sacred calendar months are 29 or 30 days each. Their years consisting of 12 lunar months or of 354 ¼ days. Therefore about every 3 years (7 times in 19 years) the 13th month Veador (also called second Adar) is added between Adar and Abib. It is known as an '' intercalary month."

 

The correct time for New Year is the 1st of Abib (Exodus 12:1-2, 13:3-4). Here is the list of months and the months they usually correspond to in the Gregorian Calendar.

 

 

 

God's days end and begin at sunset. So for example the weekly Sabbath, which is on the seventh day of the week - Saturday - begins on Friday at Sunset and ends on Saturday at sunset.

In this section we will go over the Holy Days given to the children of Israel as recorded in the Old Testament. These Holy Days point to Jesus Christ, and show us God's plan and schedule here on earth. Here is the list from Leviticus chapter 23:

1.Passover
2.Days of Unleavened Bread
3.Day of Pentecost or The Feast Of First Fruits
4.Feast of Trumpets
5.Day of Atonement
6.Feast of Tabernacles
7.The Last Great Day

However the rule of the mob prevailed and Pilate ordered Christ to be crucified. Christ was crucified outside of the city gates on the Passover - on the very day. He stood before his accusers innocent - just like a lamb.
 
Isaiah 53 : 7 " He was oppressed, and he was affected, yet he opened not his mouth : he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth.''
 
Mark 15: 4-5 " And Pilate asked him again, saying, Answerest thou nothing? Behold how many things they witness against thee. Yet Jesus answered nothing ; so that Pilate marveled. "
 
Leviticus 17:11 '' For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul. "
 
So the Roman soldiers were ordered to crucify Christ. He was exposed on a stake and nails driven through hands and feet. It takes a while for a person to die in such a situation. It is a long drawn out affair and no doubt this form of death was devised to scare off anyone from going contrary to the prevailing doctrines of the time. The chief priests and elders, scribes and other Jewish leaders had conspired against Christ and had him delivered to Pilate. Christ was very popular with the people and these leaders were worried about losing their positions of authority and status over the nation.
 
Many people cannot understand how Christ could be a King, when there He was humiliated and slowly bleeding to death on a stake. Is this the Son of God and the Messiah there in a weakened state and helpless before his tormentors? The people who witnessed the crucifixion also could not understand how this one who had done so many great works, could be wiped out so easily. And Christ's enemies mocked and jeered and made jokes. " He saved others but can't save himself " they mocked.

 

 

He was crucified and died on the Passover - right exactly on Passover day.

 

 

 

Leaven is a fermenting agent added to dough which causes it to rise and swell and ferment. Also leaven changes the composition of dough. Yeast is a leavening agent and the children of Israel were commanded not to eat any bread which had any leavening agent in it during these Holy Days. Yeast is symbolic of sin. Unleavened Bread is therefore flat and heavy. The firstborn of the Egyptians were killed, so Pharaoh out of desperation, drove the Children of Israel out of Egypt.
 
Exodus 12:33-34 " And the Egyptians were urgent upon the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste; for they said, We be all dead men. And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders."
 
Leviticus 23:6-8 " 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. In the first day ye shall have an Holy convocation : ye shall do no servile work therein. But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord seven days : in the seventh day is an Holy convocation ye shall do no servile work within."
 

Exodus 14:22-23 " And the children of Israel went into the midst of the sea upon the dry ground : and the water was a wall unto them on their right hand, and on their left. And the Egyptians pursued, and went in after them to the midst of the sea, even all Pharaoh's horses, his chariots, and his horsemen."
 
God fought for the Israelites and troubled the Egyptians and caused the wheels of their chariots to fall off. When the people were across God told Moses to stretch his hand over the sea and God would cause the waters to return to their former place.
 
Exodus 14:30 " Thus the Lord saved Israel that day out of the hand of the Egyptians dead upon the sea shore. "

You can access a video on this matter by going to  Red Sea Crossing  by the Children of Israel.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is another Holy Day, which is fifty days after the last weekly Sabbath in the Days of Unleavened Bread. It is always on a Sunday. This corresponds to the small first harvest that occurs in the land of Palestine. It is an offering of the first fruits of the land to God. It is symbolic of the first, of a much larger harvest to come later in the year. It is called the Feast of Harvests, The First Fruits of your labour, or the Day of Pentecost.
 
This day points to Christ. Jesus did not stay in the tomb, but was raised from the dead on the third day. There are many eye witnesses to this as recorded in the Bible. Many people were very skeptical at first and had to be convinced.
 
Mark 16:9-11 " Now when Jesus was risen, early the first day of the week, He appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom He had cast seven devils. And she went and told them that had been with Him, and they mourned and wept. And then when they had heard that He was alive, and had been seen to her, believed not. "
 
Mark 16: 14 -16 " Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at the table, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen. And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved ; but he that believeth not shall be damned."
 
Luke 24 : 44 - 49 "And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures. And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day. And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things. And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you : but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.
 
Mark 16 : 19 " So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
 
Acts 2:1-4 " 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 fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance."
 
The Holy Spirit was given on the Pentecost and the New Testament Church was founded on that day. The church is described as the first fruits, just like Christ.
 
1 Corinthians 15: 20-23 " But now is Christ risen from the dead, and became the first fruits 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 as in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order : Christ the first fruits ; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming."
 
Christ is the only one who has risen from the dead so far (risen from the dead to die no more). All the rest of men who died are still dead. The Church was founded on Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was sent down from heaven. God as I have pointed out is only working with a few in this day and age. The rest are not being offered salvation yet. Christ is building His church and these will be the ones He will have in His Kingdom when He returns. These are being prepared and trained now in this life. Then when they are in the Kingdom they will be more capable of doing a good job and helping Christ and serving others.

 

You can read in Revelation chapters one (1)to three(3)the history of the true Church. These are the ones being prepared. The Feast of First Fruits is symbolic of those who are the first to know Christ. The first resurrection from the dead has not happened yet. Only Christ is risen - He is the only one so far. When Christ returns to Earth then these first fruits will be resurrected to eternal life.
 

 

The Feast of Trumpets
 
Hopefully you can see how God has a plan and the Holydays show us what it is. These days are all prophetic and point to Christ and have been and will be fulfilled by Christ.

 

The next Holyday we will cover, unlike the first three, has not yet come to pass.

Passover has been fulfilled as has the Days of Unleavened Bread. Most of Pentecost has been fulfilled.

 

The Feast of Trumpets is totally in the future. I hope you can begin to see that all these events could not have been coincidental. Everything has worked out so perfectly and been prophesied thousands of years in advance. It is impossible for all this to be just the work of happenstance, or some primitive ignorant tribes. Someone planned this all out and that someone is God.
 
Leviticus 23:23-25 " And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying, 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. Ye shall do no servile work therein : but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord."
 
The blowing of a trumpet can mean many things. In our day it is usually just to make music. However, when you study the Bible the blowing of a trumpet was quite important. It was used to gather people together, or it could also mean a call to war. The sound of a trumpet in ancient Israel had a lot of significance to it.
 
The Feast of Trumpets points to Christ and His Second Coming, to rule the Earth as King of Kings and Lord of Lords, and it also points to the resurrection of the Saints. When Christ returns there will be a blast of a great trumpet and the dead in Christ will be resurrected to life (1Corinthians 15:23).
 
1 Corinthians 15:51 - 52 " Behold I show you a mystery ; We shall not all sleep, but we shall 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."
 
The Feast of Trumpets is prophetic, and shows us how Christ (the first from the dead) will raise His church up to life again. Those who are alive at the time will be changed in a split second. Christ will have been working a long time and now it is time for the first fruits - the true Church - to be raised to immortality. This is because Christ will need them to begin the work of restoring God's Kingdom on this earth.
 
Revelation 14:1 " And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the Mount Zion, and with Him and hundred forty and four thousand (144,000) having his Father's name written in their foreheads."
 
Revelation 14:4-5 " These are they which were not defiled with women ; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb withersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no guile for they are without fault before the throne of God."
 
There has been much confusion about this 144,000. There will be only 144,000 people resurrected into the Kingdom of God when Christ returns (anyways that is the way it appears). With these Christ shall set up a world ruling government on Earth.

 

It says that they stood before the throne of God and there are harpers harping and all are singing a new song before the throne. Many may reason that this means the 144,000 will be living in heaven with God. No this cannot be the answer. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. When Christ raises those from the dead they will now be truly children of God and spiritual beings. So Christ is going to take them up to heaven for a visit, because God the Father wants to have a look at his children. Described here is just some sort of presentation ceremony for the 144,000 before God the Father. It would only seem natural that now God wanted to allow them to see Him as He is and welcome them into His family formally. These 144,000 will not be ruling in heaven, but be with Christ. Christ will be on the earth.
 
Revelation 20: 4 - 5 " And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them : and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus and for the word of God, and which had not worshiped the beast, neither His image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands ; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and Holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection : on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign a thousand years."
 

The Holy Days
 
Christ has fulfilled a number of the Holy Days
 

The Passover and The Days of Unleavened Bread (have both been fulfilled)

Day of Pentecost (has not yet been fully fulfilled - we are living in the Pentecostal period of God's plan here on earth as of 2012)

Yet to be fulfilled are:

Feast of Trumpets

Day of Atonement

Feast of Tabernacles

Last Great Day

The weekly Sabbath is prophetic of the rest we shall enter into (The Kingdom of God) (Hebrews 4:1-11 note verse 4). These days show us God's plan and point to Christ.

 

Keeping The Holy Days at the Right Time and in the Proper Spirit

1.Passover - keeping the Passover in the right spirit.
2.Feast of Unleavened Bread.
3.Day of Pentecost
4.Feast of Trumpets
5.Day of Atonement
6.Feast of Tabernacles
7.Last Great Day

 

 

This writer teaches that it is a person who saves you - Jesus Christ. Keeping days and Sabbaths does not save you. We are saved by and through Jesus Christ.

 

However, the command that we keep the weekly Sabbath, is one of the Ten Commandments. The two stone tablets upon which God wrote the Ten Commandments, were placed within the ark of the covenant, which was in the Tabernacle - in the Holy of Holies. The ark is symbolic of God's throne. Therefore to this writer the command to keep the weekly Sabbath holy is very important and is not optional.
 
What I teach is that we are no longer strictly commanded to keep the annual Holy Days, except for the Passover. Christ specifically told His disciples to remember Him on the Passover.

 

Luke 22:17-20 "And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come. And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you."
 
Therefore keeping the Passover is very important and a command, since Christ said " this do in remembrance of me. "

 

In this writer's judgment keeping the other annual Holy Days is no longer strictly commanded. So, if we cannot get time off from work to keep them, then it is no big deal. However, these are customs, which help us in our worship of God, and which help us to have more faith in Christ, and which help us to keep focused upon God and Christ, and they are God's Holydays. Therefore in my judgment we should try to keep them, if we are able to. These are customs worth keeping, and they become part of our culture.

 

There are circumstances that may prevent you from keeping them. I remember not keeping the Feast of Tabernacles a few years, because it was too cold to go out tenting with my small children. They were in my judgment too weak and frail to be sleeping in a tent in the cold weather.

 

Perhaps your employer will not give you these days off - then forget about keeping them. Perhaps you are sick, or hospitalized, or you are scheduled for surgery during that time - then forget it. Perhaps an emergency situation comes up and you must deal with it. There are many and numerous matters and circumstances that can interfere in this matter - and can prevent us from keeping these annual Holydays - besides the Passover naturally.

 

 

 

Leviticus 23:5 "In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S Passover."

 

Exodus 12:14 "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 day is not a special rest day. One just goes about their regular business, unless the day happens to fall on the weekly Sabbath (from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset).

 

The important aspect of the Passover, is naturally remembering Christ and His sacrifice for our sins. " This do in remembrance of me " Jesus said. Of course this also includes keeping the Passover ceremony, and eating the Passover meal. What is important is for us to renew our commitment to Christ, and honour Christ on this day. To think about His death, and to have a Bible lesson on this matter. It is a time to pray privately and renew our relationship with Christ. This is to be taken seriously. Keeping the Passover is a solemn time, and a serious time, but also joyous, because Christ has freed us from slavery to sin and death. It is not a time to just think about eating and drinking and fellowshipping. It is a serious time, but a happy time too.

 

There are two parts to keeping the Passover. The first part is for baptized Christians only - that is the partaking of the wine and bread. This may be done prior to the eating of the Passover meal. It is not for children, and not for anyone who hasn't been baptized. It is a very special moment of remembering how Christ died for our sins, and therefore those who have not been baptized are not to be part of this, and should not even be in the same room.

 

Basically this ceremony consists of reading briefly the account of how Christ said we should remember Him and His sacrifice yearly by drinking the wine, and breaking and eating the unleavened bread on the Passover. The wine needs to be a red wine, and the bread needs to be unleavened bread.

 

A short sermon is given and then baptized believers partake of the wine and bread. This is symbolic of Jesus Christ. The wine symbolizes Christ's blood, which was shed for our sins. The bread and the breaking of the bread symbolizes Christ's body which was broken. Christ is the bread of life.

 

Luke 22:17-20 " And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of God shall come. And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me. Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you. "
 
The Passover meal is prepared on the Passover - it doesn't really take very long. Some people may eat this meal at mid-night, since it was at midnight when God killed the firstborn in Egypt but passed over the homes of the Israelites, who had the blood of the Lamb on the lintels of their front doors. But having the meal at midnight is not a requirement, especially considering you may have smaller children (Exodus 12:29-42 note verses 42 and 43 regarding the " night to be much observed). " As long as the meal is prepared and eaten on the evening of the Passover.

 

This meal is not restricted to baptized believers, but is open to the whole congregation and to all your family, and basically anyone who respectfully wants to be part of it, and remember Jesus and His sacrifice. This meal will consist of the following:
 
1. Lamb - this can be either from a goat or sheep. It needs to be roasted. Just a piece of mutton or goat meat will do, and it need not matter whether the animal is male or female. You can buy a good and appropriate piece of lamb in the supermarket.

 

We do not need to have a live goat or sheep - and then kill it on the Passover. That was part of the Old Covenant ritual, and does not apply to us today. Of course if you have a lot of people keeping the Passover at your place, and you maybe live in the country and have access to a live goat or sheep - then sure you can kill and prepare the lamb on the Passover and roast the entire animal, but it is not necessary to do it that way. The Lamb is symbolic of Jesus Christ, who died for our sins - Christ the Lamb of God.

 

2. Red wine - this is symbolic of the blood of Jesus Christ, which cleanses us of sin. It is important to realize what the wine symbolizes, and to drink it with that thought in mind. This is not a time to party and get drunk. It is not an excuse to have a party - this is a serious celebration.
 
So it would be a good idea to have only enough wine on hand for the celebration that you need - where everyone can have some, but where no one has so much that they get drunk. So purchase only as much as you need. You will need some for the ceremony of the wine and bread, and you will need enough so everyone (including children) can have some during the Passover meal.
 
3. Unleavened bread - is symbolic of the body of Jesus Christ, which was broken for our sins. It is also symbolic of us leaving our sins behind us and following Jesus - just like the children of Israel left Egypt behind and followed God.
 
It is easy to make unleavened bread. You just take some flour - either white flour or whole wheat. Whole wheat flour works much better. You just mix it with water and put in some salt, if you want and knead it, roll it flat with a rolling pin, make some light knife imprints on top of it - so it won't puff up on you while baking - then put it on a flat baking pan and bake it. It usually takes up to an hour at 400 degrees Fahrenheit, or maybe a little less. This can be prepared before Passover day.
 
4. Bitter herbs - this can be celery or horseradish and romaine lettuce may be also be eaten. You may use some other more stringent or bitter type herb if you want. The bitter herbs are symbolic of Christ's bitter sacrifice for our sins on the cross. He died a horrible death, and the bitter herbs symbolize this.
 
Prior to this meal there should be given a sermon, which explains the meaning and purpose for keeping the ceremony and how this all points to Jesus Christ.

 

It is very, very important in observing the Passover that we have the proper attitude, and we focus on Christ and what he has done for us. It is not a time for gluttony, revelry or drunkenness. It is a serious spiritual exercise where we focus on Christ, and renew our commitment to Him. It is also a joyous time, because we can give thanks to God for Christ, and thank Christ for all He has done for us. It is very important for us to have the proper attitude.

 

The Apostle Paul had some problems with the church at Corinth, because they were not keeping the Passover in the proper spirit. You can read his advice and admonition to the church, and this applies to us today as well.

1 Corinthians 11:20-30 " When ye come together therefore into one place, this is not to eat the Lord's supper. For in eating every one taketh before other his own supper: and one is hungry, and another is drunken. What? have ye not houses to eat and to drink in? or despise ye the church of God, and shame them that have not? What shall I say to you? shall I praise you in this? I praise you not.
 
" For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took bread: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me. After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do ye, as oft as ye drink it, in remembrance of me.

 

" For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do shew the Lord's death till he come. Wherefore whosoever shall eat this bread, and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
 
" But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. "
 
So remember to have the right attitude. Pray to God. And you can certainly pray to Jesus Christ and renew your relationship with Him.

 

This is a serious matter, and those in charge of the meal should not permit people to partake of it, if they are mockers, or if they have a very disrespectful attitude towards Christ. I have had my children eat this meal with me ever since they were very small, but now they are getting older where they are making their own decisions, and if they begin to have a disrespectful or hostile attitude towards Christ- then it is my responsibility to not permit them to partake of it.

 

Then you eat the Passover meal. And that is basically it for another year.

To watch a video related to this subject please go to  The Ark of the Covenant

 

Remember that God ends and begins new days at sunset.

 

Numbers 9:6-11 "And there were certain men, who were defiled by the dead body of a man, that they could not keep the Passover on that day: and they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day:

 

"And those men said unto him, We are defiled by the dead body of a man: wherefore are we kept back, that we may not offer an offering of the LORD in his appointed season among the children of Israel?
 
"And Moses said unto them, Stand still, and I will hear what the LORD will command concerning you.
 
"And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
 
"Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the Passover unto the LORD.
 
"The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs."
 

The Feast of Unleavened Bread
 
The first and last days of the feast of Unleavened Bread are annual Sabbaths. The Feast of Unleavened Bread always runs from Abib 15-21 in God's calendar.

 

 

 

Christ kept these days, so why shouldn't we too, if we can get the time off ? But, if you can't then don't worry about it. I myself have missed keeping a good number of the annual Holy Days on quite a few occasions, and it is no big deal.

 

However, I do teach that keeping the Passover yearly and keeping the weekly Sabbath (from Friday sunset to Saturday sunset) are very important - and are not optional in nature.

 

I teach that keeping the other Holy Days (besides Passover and the weekly Sabbath), are not strictly commanded. They all point to Christ. A number of years I have not been able to get time off from my employer, so worked on the Holy Days (aside from Passover and the weekly Sabbath of course) - it is no big deal. Fortunately for me now - I have a really understanding employer, and so am able to keep all the Holy Days, and even the Feast of Tabernacles. So I am really grateful for that.

 

I also teach that it is quite important we observe God's annual Holy Days, and not pagan customs. There are only seven annual Holy Days listed in the Bible in Leviticus 23rd chapter - no other days are listed, like Hanukah, Christmas, Easter, and so on.

 

No man or religion has authority to create other days and say they are Holy Days. Only God has the right and authority to declare a certain day a Holy Day. God's presence in these days make the days Holy Days. And there are only seven listed, including the weekly Sabbath, and they are: Passover, Feast of Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, Feast of tabernacles and the Last Great Day.

 

 

Leviticus 23:6-8 " 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. In the first day ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD seven days: in the seventh day is an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. "
 
We are supposed to remove leaven from our homes, and leaven is symbolic of sin. This ceremony and exercise shows us that we need to leave our sins behind us, and follow Christ. We are supposed to - with Christ's help put away our sins. Christ is there to cleanse us of sin, but we ourselves have to take an active interest, and work to leave our sins behind. These Holy Days point to and are prophetic of Jesus Christ and what He did for us - so keep focused on Christ.

 

So we remove anything (from our homes only) that has leavening in it, prior to the Passover. This naturally includes yeast packages, or other breads or products with yeast in them. We take these away and throw them in the garbage, or give them away. This exercise is symbolic of us leaving our sin behind, and following Christ - just like the children of Israel left Egypt (which is symbolic of sin) and followed God. It shows us that we are not passive actors in this exercise - we must step out in living faith - leave our old lives of sin behind and follow God and His ways.

 

Exodus 12:15 " Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: ...............
 
Exodus 12:17 " And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever. "
 
The following scriptures show us that we are supposed to put away leavening from our homes and start eating unleavened bread on the Passover and then we are to continue putting away leaven and eating unleavened bread right through to the end of Days of Unleavened Bread at sunset.

Exodus 12:18 " In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. "

 

This is eight days, so obviously we are to not eat unleavened bread starting on Passover.

 

Exodus 12:19-20 " Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: ........ Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread. "

This is referring to the actual seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

 

The Feast of Unleavened Bread has to be one of the Holy Days where God the Father and Jesus Christ intervene in our lives more than almost any other Holy Day. This has been my experience. Why is that ? Because Jesus Christ had to die for our sins, and He is intent on cleansing His servants of sin. It is one of His jobs, and He takes it seriously. So He wants to show us our sins during this time, and He wants us to leave our sins behind. God the Father and Jesus Christ hate sin - sin goes against God's will.
 
Malachi 3:2-3 " But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap: And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the LORD an offering in righteousness. "
 
Luke 3:17 " Whose fan is in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and will gather the wheat into his garner; but the chaff he will burn with fire unquenchable. "

 

1 Corinthians 5:7-8 " 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: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. "
 
Titus 2:14 " Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works. "
 
James 4:8 " Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. "
 

God the Father teaches, corrects and punishes His children. God the Father is intent on creating righteous character in us, and He is eager to show us our sins, so we can put them away and stop doing them. God will show us our sins on the Feast of Unleavened Bread, if we ask Him to, and if we are willing to learn, and have a repentant attitude.

 

Hebrews 12: 1-11 " Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,
 
"Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God.
 
"For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest ye be wearied and faint in your minds.
 
"Ye have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.
 
"And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of him:
 
"For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
 
"If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?
 
"But if ye be without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and not sons.
 
"Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live?
 
"For they verily for a few days chastened us after their own pleasure; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
 
"Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby. "

This is a time when Jesus Christ shows us our sins. Jesus had to die a horrible death on the cross, so we could have forgiveness of our sins through His blood.

 

So, if you keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the right spirit, and focus on Christ and His sacrifice for your sins - then you should expect God to show you some of your sins - especially the more major sins of yours. You should expect God to intervene in your life during this time - unless you are sinless and perfect, and therefore have no sins to repent of. However, we know that none of us is perfect, and there is always some sins around, and there is always room for spiritual improvement.

 

I remember years back while living in Edmonton. This was after being baptized. Used to drink beer, wine and other spirits. Come from a family of heavy drinkers - on both sides. Some of them were alcoholics - but they still worked and functioned. So there is a genetic tendency toward drink in our family, and a weakness towards booze. Some of my relatives drank beer, like you would drink water.

 

Could put away a lot of alcohol myself, but still work, and it never caused trouble, and I never got into any car accidents while under the influence, or any kind of problems as such. Well one year the Feast of Unleavened Bread came along, and I was keeping it as usual. Got this very severe fever - right during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. It just came up suddenly. It was so severe that it affected my balance - and I sort of stumbled and was dizzy like someone who had drank too much. This was quite serious, and it frightened me.

 

Called up the Pastor, and he came over and anointed me with oil and prayed for my healing. I thanked him, and then next asked him to drive me to the hospital. I look to Christ for healing, but I also look to the Doctor to help in the healing. We need to see a Doctor, if we are serious ill. So go to the Doctor please - they can prescribe some medication to aid in your healing. Anyways they gave me fluids intravenously at the hospital, and then later sent me home with some medication.

 

Was very weak for the next few days, but eventually recovered 100 %.
 
The lesson sunk in very clearly. God was warning me about this drinking. Too much drinking of booze can lead to drunkenness, and my Bible says that no drunkard shall enter into the Kingdom of God.

 

1 Corinthians 6:9 " Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? ............
 
1 Corinthians 6:10 " Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. "
 
The high fever (and this was a very high fever believe me) was symbolic of my fate, if I let this drinking business turn me into a drunk. The fate of an unrepentant, incorrigible drunkard is to be burned up in the Lake of Fire - which the high fever symbolized. My dizziness was confirmation to me from God that it was this drinking business that He was telling me about, and He wanted me to keep it in check.
 
So I got the message, but the problem was not overcome right away. Eventually it was solved, but it took a long time. We are supposed to work to overcome our weaknesses, and we are supposed to be overcomers until the end. This doesn't mean we will be able to overcome absolutely all of our sins and weaknesses, but we need to work on them. With God's and Christ's help we can overcome.

 

This is just one example of being punished, and my sins being shown to me right on the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Amazing isn't it ?

 

These are Holy Days and they belong to God. God will speak to you on these days, if you keep them in the right spirit. God wants us to get rid of our sins for our own good and profit. God sent Christ to this earth to die for our sins. God is very eager to show us our sins - not to humiliate us, but to help us. So all you need do is pray and ask God to show you your sins - especially the more serious ones - and you can ask in complete faith, because you are asking God to do something that He already wants to do. So, all you are doing is asking God to give you something He and Christ are already very willing to do - so you can have 100 % confidence that this is God's will, and so have complete faith that it will be answered - answered naturally in God's own way and time.

 

So you can expect God to show you your sins during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, - not all of them naturally, but probably the really big and serious one, or ones - that is if you pray for God to do this and you keep the Holy Days properly, and in the right spirit. Such a prayer (for God to show you your sin) during the Feast of Unleavened Bread is almost 100 % guaranteed to be answered. You may be shocked at how swiftly God will answer such a prayer. But such prayers must be offered up in faith, and we must have the right and proper respectful attitude towards God and Jesus Christ.

 

 

Day of Pentecost
 
To calculate Pentecost you count seven Sabbaths from the last weekly Sabbath in the Feast of Unleavened Bread - and then add one day to make 50. " Pente " means fifty. Thus Pentecost is always on a Sunday, and usually in June (Leviticus 23:15-16, 21).

 

We are currently living in the Pentecostal period of God's plan and schedule. It is the time when God is just working with the Church.

 

After Christ had been crucified His dead body lay for 3 days and 3 nights in the tomb. God resurrected Him, and thus Christ won the victory over sin and death.

After Christ's resurrection He appeared to His followers for 40 days.

 

1 Corinthians 15:3-8 " For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time. For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. "
 
Acts 1:1-3 " The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, Until the day in which He was taken up, after that He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments unto the apostles whom He had chosen: To whom also He 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: And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, 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 Spirit not many days hence. "

 

The new testament Church of God was founded when the Holy Spirit was sent down from heaven and entered the 120 believers assembled on the Day of Pentecost.

 

Acts 2:1-4 " 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 Spirit, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. "

 

Thus was the new testament Church of God founded on the Day of Pentecost. The book of Revelation in chapters two and three gives us prophecies of the true Church through the ages - right up to our time here in the last days.

 

There are seven different eras of the true Church. In Asia during Paul's time there were these seven congregations of believers in seven different towns or cities. There were congregations of God's true church at Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamos, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea. This was on a mail route in Asia (the land currently called Turkey as of 2008), and the first community on the mail route was Ephesus, and the last was Laodicea.

 

The messages given to the seven churches are prophecies of God's true Church through the ages - right to our time today. They are in chronological order. Ephesus consisted of the early church - the twelve apostles, the apostle Paul, Mary the Mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene and so on. That era gradually over time faded away, and a new era of God's true church began, and it continued until it too began to fade away, and was absorbed by a new phase or era of God's true church - often in a different area, and certainly in a different time and often in a different culture.

1.Ephesus Era - from 31 AD to maybe 98AD to 135 AD.

 

2.Smyrna Era - from around 98 AD or 135 AD to around 340 AD.

 

3. Pergamos Era from around 340 Ad to 1104 AD.

 

4. Thyatira Era - from around 1104 to about 1578 AD.

 

5. Sardis Era - from about 1578 to sometime in the 1900's, but this is just a guess. 

 

6. Philadelphia Era from sometime maybe towards the mid to perhaps the end of the 1900's (like maybe the late 1980's or so)  up to the return of Christ (which may be sometime between 2040 and 2070 - give or take a few years).

 

7. Laodicea Era - sometimes from perhaps the late 1900's up to the return of Christ - basically an era of God's true church that is a contemporary of the Philadelphia Era. 

It is impossible to say with certainty a specific date when a new phase of God's true Church of God began, and it is impossible to tell when the previous phase began to decline, and when it exactly ended. We can only give an approximate time frame. 

 

It is impossible to know for sure when exactly one era ended and another began, but we can make some rough estimations. Very, very rough estimates. You can look up some web sites on the internet regarding the history of the true church.

 

In keeping the Day of Pentecost we need to see how this points to Jesus Christ - who is the firstfruits. Christ is the first to rise from the dead to die no more.

 

1 Corinthians 15:19-23 " If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable. 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. "
 
God the Father and Christ, according to their plan (which the annual Holydays show us) are just working with the church at this time - the small firstfruits. When Christ returns He will resurrect these His servants, and use them to form His world ruling government - the Kingdom of God. These servants of God have been and are being prepared of God to rule with Christ, when Jesus returns to set up His Kingdom.

 

Revelation 20:4-7 " And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. "

 

Daniel 3:44 " And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever. "

 

Daniel 7: 13-14 " I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought Him near before him. And there was given Him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve Him: His dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and His kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
 
Daniel 7:22 " Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom."

 

Daniel 7:27 " And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him. "

 

So to keep the Day of Pentecost in the correct spirit - focus on Christ the firstfruits - the first to rise from the dead to die no more. Next think about the Church, and how Christ builds the church, and the seven different eras of God's true Church - and then think about how the church has been and is being prepared today to rule with and under Christ in Christ's kingdom here on earth.

 

The Saints will rule this earth under Christ. They will be part of Christ's world ruling government. They have been and are being trained by God to rule with Jesus in Christ's Kingdom here on earth - the Kingdom of God, which Christ shall establish here on earth at His second coming. And folks that isn't that far off - sometime probably between 2040 to 2070 !!

 

The resurrection of the saints happens at the last trump (1 Corinthians 15:51-52) (Matthew 24:29-31) - this is when Christ returns.
 

Feast of Trumpets
 
The Feast of Trumpets is always on Tishri the 1st.

 

In Judaism this day is called Rosh Hashanah and is commonly known as the Jewish New Year. However, there is no biblical evidence to support the Feast of Trumpets being the beginning of the New Year in God's sacred calendar. Tishri is the seventh month in God's sacred calendar, not the first month.

 

God's new year begins on the first of Abib, which is always in the spring, just prior to Passover. Passover is on the 14th of Abib.
 
Exodus 12:1-2   " 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. "
 
Exodus 12:18-31  " In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land. Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread. Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the Passover. And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop, and dip it in the blood that is in the bason, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood that is in the bason; and none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning. For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you. And ye shall observe this thing for an ordinance to thee and to thy sons for ever. And it shall come to pass, when ye be come to the land which the LORD will give you, according as he hath promised, that ye shall keep this service. And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service? That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD'S Passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped. And the children of Israel went away, and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so did they. And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle. And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead. And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the LORD, as ye have said. "
 
Exodus 13: 3-4  " And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the LORD brought you out from this place: there shall no leavened bread be eaten. This day came ye out in the month Abib. "

 

It is very clear from the scriptures that the Feast of Trumpets is not the beginning of the New Year, but rather the first of Abib is the beginning of the New Year.

 

This day - the Feast of Trumpets - points to Jesus Christ. It is prophetic of the return of Christ to the earth to set up the Kingdom of God, and it also points to the resurrection of the saints, which happens at the Last Trump when Christ returns.

 

Revelation 8:1-2 " And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets."
 
The seventh seal, is divided into seven trumpets.

 

Revelation 8:6  " And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. "
 

1.First trumpet - 1/3 of the trees and green grass burnt up (Rev. 8:6-7).

2.Second trumpet - burning mountain cast into the sea, 1/3 of sea turns to blood, and 1/3 of life in the sea perishes. 1/3 of the ships destroyed (Revelation 8:8-9). A meteorite impact perhaps ?

3.Third trumpet - a star falling from the sky poisoning 1/3 of the waters (Revelation 8:10-11). A comet maybe ?

4.Fourth trumpet - 1/3 of the sun, moon and stars darkened (Revelation 8:12). Could this be the result of dust thrown up in the sky by a meteorite and comet impact ?

5.Fifth trumpet - all mankind , except those with the seal of God in their foreheads will suffer in torments for five months (Revelation 9:1-12). Plants like grass and trees not affected. Could this be chemical or biological warfare? Quite likely ! Many nations will rebel against the ten nation Beast power and a world war will begin, with probably chemical or biological weapons used in the initial strike and counter strike. In Daniel 11:44-45 the Beast is troubled by tidings out of the North and East. North of Jerusalem is Russia and East is Asia - nations like India and China.

6.Sixth trumpet There is a nuclear weapons exchange and 1/3 of mankind is killed in the nuclear holocaust (Revelation 9:13-21). At this point Jesus Christ intervenes to cut short the days, because if He didn't then mankind would destroy all human life in this insane nuclear war.

 

7) Seventh angel blows the seventh trumpet and Christ returns:

 

The resurrection of the saints happens at the Last Trump, or the seventh trumpet blast.
 
1 Thessalonians 4:15-17 " 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. "

 

1 Corinthians 15:51-52 " Behold, I shew 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. "

It looks like the resurrection of the two witnesses will happen at the same time or round about the same time (Revelation 11:7-12).
 
Matthew 24:29-31 " Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: 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. 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. "

 

Christ will return to this earth. He shall gather His elect from the four winds - from one end of heaven to the other.

 

In the Bible there are three different meanings for the term heaven. One is where God lives. Two is the universe, and all the stars and constellations. Three refers to the atmosphere around the earth - the sky. Christ will resurrect or change His elect when He returns, and they will gather together with Him in the sky - in the atmosphere here on earth.

 

They will not return with Christ from the heaven where God lives. They will have been dead, and Jesus will resurrect them at the Last Trump. From the thread of biblical prophecy it is very, very clear that the Last Trump is still very much in the future - it has not happened yet.

 

Zechariah 14:3-4 " Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south. "

 

Christ will return at the Last Trump. He will resurrect the saints, and in a twinkling of an eye change those saints who happen to be alive at the time from mortal to immortal.

 

Christ will gather the saints in the sky - in the clouds of the earth's atmosphere. Christ will then proceed to touch down here on earth on the Mount of Olives. His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives. Christ will rule the earth from Jerusalem, which will be the world capital in Christ's Kingdom, and the Mount of Olives is just across from the Temple Mount in Jerusalem.

 

When Christ returned to heaven after His resurrection - He was taken up into the sky from the Mount of Olives, and disappeared behind some clouds. He and some of His disciples had gathered on the Mount of Olives. These disciples of Christ witnessed this event. Angels appeared unto His disciples. The angels said, or prophesied that in the same way as Christ was taken up from the earth - it will be the same way He shall return.

 

Acts 1:9-12 " And when He had spoken these things, while they beheld, He was taken up; and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as He went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel; Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen Him go into heaven. "

 

Revelation 20:4-6 " And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection. Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years. "

 

 

If you cannot get the time off from work then forget it. However, we should make an effort to get the time off. Essential chores still need to be performed like milking cows, taking care of pets and so on. We still need to take care of our children and do the essentials.

If the weather is good this would be a good time to go to the park, but we need to be focused on Christ, and not view the Feast of Trumpets as just a chance to have a party. It is a religious holyday first and foremost, but it is also a time to enjoy yourself too.

Have a pleasant Feast of Trumpets.
 

The Day of Atonement
 
The Day of Atonement is always on Tishri the 10th. Once again God's days begin and end at sunset, so the Day of Atonement starts at sunset on the 9th and ends on the 10th at sunset.
 
Leviticus 23:26-28 " And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD. And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the LORD your God. "
 
Leviticus 23:31-32 " Ye shall do no manner of work: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. It shall be unto you a Sabbath of rest, and ye shall afflict your souls: in the ninth day of the month at even, from even unto even, shall ye celebrate your Sabbath. "
 
This is an annual Sabbath. We no longer make an offering made by fire, since Christ and His sacrifice on the cross did away with the system of offerings.

 

" Afflict your souls," refers to fasting. We are to fast during this day, and repent of our sins. Fasting refers to going without anything to eat or drink for the entire 24 hour period, from sunset to sunset.

 

If someone has a medical condition that reacts negatively to fasting and going without water for one day, then please take care of your health, and forget the fasting. There are some people like those with severe diabetes, who need to have a regular intact of food and liquids, so for people like that - it is okay to have some drink and food on the Day of Atonement. As well small children should not be forced to go without food or drink for this time. The fasting part needs to be something those keeping the day do voluntarily, and should not be forced on anyone, especially children. Small children in this writers judgment should not be involved in fasting. Their parents should just not allow it for them - when they get bigger and feel ready and able to go without food and drink the whole day then fine, but it needs to be their own decision.

 

Fasting helps us have a humble attitude towards God. With an empty growling stomach you realize how really weak and frail us human beings are, and how much we depend on God for life. This will strengthen you spiritually, and help you have the proper attitude and respect towards God, who gives life, and who gives us our daily bread.

 

Without food or drink we cannot live very long - without food we may survive a month or more, but we can only survive a few days without water. Water is essential to our life. So we realize how really dependent upon God we are.

 

It is a very serious and solemn Holyday. We are to think about our sins, and repent of our sins, and humble ourselves before God. And believe me, going without food and drink for one whole day is a humbling experience. You realize how weak and frail we humans really are, and how we are so dependent upon, and need God so very, very much.

 

This day points to Jesus Christ. It also shows us God's plan and schedule.

 

What this writer teaches regarding the Day of Atonement is that we are not strictly commanded to keep this day. However, it is one of God's Holydays, so if we can get the day off from work or school then we should make an effort to observe the day. It is a time to honour God on one of His Holydays. It will help us stay closer to God, and help us to have more faith in Christ. It will help keep us focused on Christ. It is also a custom worth keeping, and Christ Himself kept these Holydays, and we are to follow His example.

 

However, keeping the annual Sabbaths does not save us. It is a person who saves us, and that person is Jesus Christ. So keep focused on Christ during the Day of Atonement.This day points to Christ. Christ is our High Priest, who has made atonement of our sins through His shed blood. Through faith in Christ and His sacrifice for our sins, we can have forgiveness of sins from God the Father through Christ's shed blood. For without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 9th Chapter).

 

Hebrews 9:22 " And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission. "
 
Under Old Testament Law the High Priest was to perform the rituals that surrounded the Day of Atonement yearly (please read and refer to Leviticus the 16th Chapter).

 

The High Priest was to enter into the Holy Place (the Holy of Holies behind the veil in the Tabernacle) only once a year with blood - on the Day of Atonement. The blood was to make atonement for himself and his house, as well as for the people. He was to take a censer with burning coals, and take the censer within the vail - he was to then burn incense before the mercy seat.

 

He was to then sprinkle the blood of a bullock on and before the mercy seat seven times with his finger, which was atonement for his sins and the sins of his house.

 

The High Priest was also supposed to take two goats, and present them before the Lord at the door of the tabernacle. Lots were cast to determine which goat was to be sacrificed, and which goat was to be taken far away into the wilderness and released (verses 5, 7-8)
 
The sin offering goat was then killed, and the High Priest took blood from this goat behind the veil before the mercy seat and sprinkled some blood on the mercy seat, and before the mercy seat. This sacrifice was for the atonement of the sins of the people - for the uncleanness of the people. The High Priest was to then to go out and sprinkle some of the blood from the sin offering goat upon the altar, which cleansed it, and hallowed it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel (verses 15-19).
 
This sin offering goat - the one sacrificed - is symbolic and prophetic of Jesus Christ. Christ the Lamb of God, who is slain for our sins.

 

The live goat was then taken and the High Priest laid his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confessed over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel (verse 21-22). This goat was then taken far away into the wilderness where no one lived and released.

 

This live goat, which bears all the sins of the people and is taken away into a solitary uninhabited place and released is symbolic of Satan the Devil. God will hold Satan responsible for all sins, and place the burden of all sins upon him, and will take Satan (and the fallen angels) and lock them up in hell forever. Satan will never be able to get back, and will be forever banished to hell.
 
This points to what Christ will do when He returns. Christ will take Satan and lock him up in the bottomless pit for a thousand years. He and the fallen angels will not be permitted to cause the people trouble during the Millennium Period. After the thousand years are over Satan will be let out of his prison for a short space of time. However, in the end Satan and the fallen angels are locked up in hell and tormented forever in hell. The goat which has all the sins of the people placed upon its head and is taken to the wilderness and released is symbolic of Satan, and symbolic and prophetic of Satan's fate. Satan is the author of sin, and he is responsible for sin - he sinned first, and is the father of lies. He will banished forever to hell, where he will never again be allowed to get back with the people.

 

Described for you now are things that happen shortly after Christ has returned to earth and resurrected the saints. The Day of Atonement is prophetic of what Christ will do with Satan.

 

Revelation 20:1-3 " And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season. "

 

Revelation 20: 7-10 " And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. "

 

The beast and the false prophet were thrown into the lake of fire, but they were burnt up. Satan and the fallen angels are thrown into the lake of fire, but they are spirits, and so cannot die, and cannot be burnt up.

 

Satan has been the one responsible for spreading the lie that humans who reject God's offer of salvation will be suffering in hell forever. In reality it is Satan and the fallen angels themselves, who will suffer in hell forever. The wicked people will just be burnt up, and turn into ashes.

 

So we can see how the Old Testament rituals regarding the Day of Atonement fit in so perfectly with Gods plans for the future, and are prophetic of the coming of Christ and His sacrifice for our sins.

 

No human being, or people could have put all these things together so perfectly. These are Gods Holydays and they point to Jesus Christ, and they show us God's schedule here on earth.

 

The Day of Atonement shows us that after Christ has returned, and locked up Satan - the world will then truly be at-one-ment with God.

 

 

The Feast of Tabernacles and the Last Great Day.

 

The Last Great Day falls right after the seven day long Feast of Tabernacles. Therefore it is easy to assume it is part of the Feast of Tabernacles, but really it is an entirely separate Holy Day.

 

Leviticus 23:34-35 " 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. On the first day shall be an holy convocation: ye shall do no servile work therein. "
 
Leviticus 23:36 " Seven days ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: on the eighth day shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD: it is a solemn assembly; and ye shall do no servile work therein. "
 
It is quite clear from scripture that the Feast of Tabernacles is seven days long, and the 8th day is a separate Holy Day. Naturally, since it comes on the very next day right after the Feast of Tabernacles - there is a tendency to just lump it in with Tabernacles.

 

We have a record in the scriptures of Jesus Christ keeping the Feast of Tabernacles, and the Last Great Day.

 

John 7:37 " In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. "
 
What this writer teaches is that we are not strictly commanded to observe the Feast of Tabernacles, or the Last Great Day. If we can get the time off from work, school, or our other responsibilities then fine go for it. It is a wonderful opportunity to have some time off to relax and enjoy yourself, and build up our relationship with God and Christ. However, if you just cannot get the time off - then forget about it. It is a person who saves us - Jesus Christ - not keeping annual Holydays.

 

This is an excellent custom to follow, and we learn so many important life lessons, because these days belong to God, and He will teach us during this time, if we keep the Feast of Tabernacles in the right spirit.

 

The first day of Tabernacles is a special Holyday - you observe it like you would the weekly Sabbath.

 

We are supposed to live in a temporary dwelling place during that time.

 

Leviticus 23:39-44 " Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a Sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a Sabbath. 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. 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. Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths: 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. And Moses declared unto the children of Israel the feasts of the LORD. " (Deuteronomy 16:13-15)

 

This doesn't mean we absolutely must make booths made of limbs of trees and such. The idea is to live in a temporary dwelling place. This can be a tent. It can be a trailer, or camper. It can be a motel room. It can also be a little temporary structure you put up specifically for the occasion perhaps attached to, or very near your permanent dwelling place. In ancient Israel many of the houses had flat roofs that were accessible from the bottom, and that was a place where people could build their little temporary shelters.

 

Nehemiah 8:14-18 " And they found written in the law which the LORD had commanded by Moses, that the children of Israel should dwell in booths in the feast of the seventh month: And that they should publish and proclaim in all their cities, and in Jerusalem, saying, Go forth unto the mount, and fetch olive branches, and pine branches, and myrtle branches, and palm branches, and branches of thick trees, to make booths, as it is written. So the people went forth, and brought them, and made themselves booths, every one upon the roof of his house, and in their courts, and in the courts of the house of God, and in the street of the water gate, and in the street of the gate of Ephraim. And all the congregation of them that were come again out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths: for since the days of Joshua the son of Nun unto that day had not the children of Israel done so. And there was very great gladness. Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and on the eighth day was a solemn assembly, according unto the manner. "
 
Now where do we keep the Feast of Tabernacles ? The idea is to keep it where the Lord chooses . However, God does not speak to us directly in this regard. So where do we keep this Holyday ?

 

Deuteronomy 16:15 " Seven days shalt thou keep a solemn feast unto the LORD thy God in the place which the LORD shall choose: ...... "
 
If you belong to an organized church group, then the decision as to the location of the Feast of Tabernacles would be decided by the organization itself - in harmony with its decision making process. Various church groups have different ways of dealing with the matter, and coming to a decision.

 

If you do not belong to any organized religious group, like this writer, then you just pray about it, and trust God to lead you through His spirit to the place where He wants you to keep it. Then you make a decision, which you feel is God's will, and step out in faith.

 

Nothing is stopping people from traveling to far away places to observe the Feast of Tabernacles. It is a great time to travel, and see the country, and still be involved in a very useful spiritual exercise. The important thing to remember is to keep focused on God and Jesus Christ, and not to just look to the fellowshipping, socializing, eating and drinking. Sure this is a time to rejoice and have a good time, but it is first and foremost an important spiritual exercise. So it is important we pray, read our Bibles, and have regular Bible lessons during that time. Concentrate on the spiritual.

 

Additionally, many people travel, and are away from home - it can be stressful especially if you have small children. So take it easy, drive safely, pray, concentrate on the spiritual and have faith in God to see you through, and enable you to have a joyous Feast of Tabernacles and to get home safely, if we have traveled away from home.

 

This writer has kept the Feast of Tabernacles in quite a few different places over the years since 1978. At first I kept it with the Worldwide Church of God, at the place they chose.

 

Remember going to Calgary for a couple of years. They had regular meetings and sermons each day at the Convention Centre. However, since the very early 1980's I have not been affiliated with that organization so have kept the Feast of Tabernacles wherever I felt God's spirit, and my financial resources were leading me.

 

While single have kept it at Jasper, Alberta; Salem, Oregon; Victoria, BC; Edmonton; and at Golden Ears Provincial Park in BC. There was an odd year where it could not be kept, due to finances and also because of just starting a new job, and not having enough holiday time built up yet.

 

After getting married and having kids there were a couple of years where the children were so small and frail that we never kept it at all, due to the coldness of the season - it was in my judgment too cold for tenting with such small kids. And for quite a few years we were too poor to travel anywhere, so we just set up a tent here in the backyard in Calgary, but still slept in our home. We lived in our home, but would go out occasionally to our tent, and often ate meals there, etc.

 

Other places we went to keep the Feast of Tabernacles were Ucluelet on Vancouver Island, the BC Interior and Nelson, Banff National Park, Peter Lougheed Provincial Park, Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park here in Southern Alberta.

 

In 2005 I and the kids motored from Calgary out to Vancouver, BC. We camped out about half the time and stayed in Motels during the rest of the time.

 

In 2006 we went to Vancouver Island and Pacific Rim National Park, and also stopped in at Victoria. The weather in 2006 was beautifully sunny and warm, except for one day where we got rain.

 

In 2007 we kept most of it at Dinosaur Provincial Park in Southern Alberta - camping out - it was a bit cool at nights, but tolerable, and it was fairly warm (considering the season and place) during the daytime.

 

Also travelled to New Brunswick and Nova Scotia in 2011.  

 

The great lesson we learn (if we are willing to learn) on the Feast of Tabernacles is that we do not have a permanent home in this world. The earth, and the things of the earth are only temporary. We are just pilgrims and strangers passing through. We have a permanent home reserved for us in God's Kingdom, where we will be given new bodies that will never get old and die. The bodies we have now are of the earth, of the dust of the earth, and are just temporary.

 

In this world we have no permanent home. We look for a permanent home in God's Kingdom. We look to the spiritual. Keeping the Feast of Tabernacles in a temporary dwelling place helps us understand the temporary nature of our physical existence, and our physical life is so tied in with our material homes.

 

Hebrews 11:13-16 " These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth. For they that say such things declare plainly that they seek a country. And truly, if they had been mindful of that country from whence they came out, they might have had opportunity to have returned. But now they desire a better country, that is, an heavenly: wherefore God is not ashamed to be called their God: for he hath prepared for them a city. "
 
We were in Edmonton for the Feast of Tabernacles a few years back. I wanted to show the kids one place where I used to live. So we go to the area where I used to live in a basement suite in a house owned by the Labaschuk family about 25 years before. They were both quite elderly, and were wonderful to me. I really enjoyed living there. Anyways we go over to the place just East of the Exhibition Grounds, and look around. What ! Where are the houses ? All the houses on that street are gone - there was just grass and completely vacant land, and no doubt the elderly Labaschuks have long since died ! We indeed do not have any permanent home in this world.
 
God also taught my eldest daughter an important lesson in Edmonton. We were staying at this Motel. A nice place, but not too expensive. Anyways there was a coffee pot in the room where we could make some coffee, and heat it up. She and her sister were brewing and drinking some coffee. She decided to start washing the pot, even though we did not have to do that. She did this for a few days, but one day she got the lid stuck inside, and accidentally broke the coffee pot. This was really upsetting to her, especially after I suggested that maybe now she would have to pay the motel for the cost of a new pot. Yikes !
 
The lesson was quite simple. Our lives are very frail and weak, like that thin coffee pot. We can be broken so easily. The things of the earth are only temporary. Oh by the way I told her to report the matter to the front desk, and offer to pay for the pot. She did, but they said they had a lot of spare coffee pots, so we were to just forget it.

 

There have been many other lessons taught us on the Feast of Tabernacles and the theme is usually that of this life and the things of the earth being only temporary. We look for a permanent home in God's Kingdom, where we will never die, and where we will have new bodies that will be strong spiritual bodies, not like the weak, frail, transitory physical bodies we have now.

 

The lesson is to concentrate on the things of the spirit.

 

John 6:27 " Labour not for the meat which perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you: for him hath God the Father sealed. "

The Feast of Tabernacles is also prophetic of the Millennium, which will be the thousand year rule of Christ. It will be a time of peace, joy and prosperity. God's spirit will be poured out and all human beings will be called to salvation in the Millennium. Christ and the saints shall rule the earth, and there will be good government.

 

Revelation 20:4 " And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. "

 

Daniel 7:27 " And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be given to the people of the saints of the most High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey Him. "
 
Micah 4:1-3 " But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in His paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. "
 

Last Great Day
 
This is the last of the seven annual Holydays. It points to Jesus Christ and is prophetic of the Judgment. Christ is our Judge (John 5:21-23).
 
One year I and my immediate family went to Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park here in Southern Alberta, which is about 20 miles from the town of Milk River, to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. They have a beautiful campground, and even though it was late in the fall the weather was almost perfect. We left to go home prior to the Last Great Day, and just as we had everything packed and were leaving - the rainy weather started.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The situation with the people in the Judgment period is different from those who lived during the thousand year millennium period. Satan and the fallen angels will have been locked up during the thousand years. So they will not have been around to cause trouble during that time. However, during the judgment period Satan and the fallen angels will be let out of their prison.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Revelation 20:14-15 " And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. "

 

Satan and the fallen angels are condemned to eternal torment in hell. The beast and the false prophet will have been thrown in the Lake of Fire, but they will have been burnt up. Satan and the fallen angels are spirits, and cannot be burnt up.

The earth will turn into something like a ball of fire.