THE FEASTS OF THE LORD
There are seven Feasts of the Lord presented in Scripture. Visit each one below to learn more.
PASSOVER
Passover is a beautiful season; it is a time of starting again. It reminds us of the purity of Messiah Jesus and His call upon us to live a pure life, a new life. As the Apostle Paul described,
"Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed Christ, our Passover, was sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth." (1 Corinthians 5:7-8)
Paul is not merely suggesting that we partake of the bread and wine with pure hearts. He says that we should live each day in the same godly way we keep the Feast, and with the same mind of Christ controlling us.
Yes, Jesus is the Lamb of God; He is the Redeemer. He is the One who lived a perfect life. He was God in the flesh and so are we. He is the example of how we, His redeemed people, should live. May the Lord give us the strength this Passover to put away the leaven (the individual mind) and live in purity and humility through the Mind of Christ so that the power of the Gospel might be unleashed through us!
Jesus' Death, Burial and Resurrection - Our Passover Lamb
(Additional Resource)
UNLEAVENED BREAD
We must come to the realization that the Feast of Unleavened Bread is much greater than an annual ritual. For some, great emphasis has been placed upon searching the house for hidden leaven, using a feather to sweep it into a wooden spoon and ultimately burning the three items. For others, great emphasis has been placed upon wearing white garments for a season. Rituals are simply set in order as reminders, not gospel.
Since learning comes by means of repetition, God in His infinite wisdom repeats the same feasts, year after year. The importance of His feasts should be obvious. Now that's gospel, something accepted as unquestionably true.
God loves us beyond measure. Since His ways and thoughts are above ours, He clothed Himself in flesh in order to relate to us on our level of thinking. It was not so that He could dwell at our level, but to elevate us to a higher level. Now, we move forward with the understanding that our warfare is not physical, it is spiritual.
As I gain more knowledge of the spirit man for better living, I become more like Him. I don't place emphasis on material things such as whether or not I swept every single crumb off of the floor. I focus on those things that have an impact on my spirit man. After all, God is Spirit.
Therefore, now that I have repented, been restored and healed, I claim deliverance from the old way of thinking. I proceed with a refreshed spiritual focus on whatever God has ordered for my life.
WHAT TO EAT?
Foods eaten during Unleavened Bread
Matzah, eggs, almonds, pecans and food without leaven (Read the labels)
Fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables (also juices) that do not contain leaven
Coffee, tea, milk and other drinks without leaven
Clean meats (as outlined in Leviticus 11) such as beef, veal, lamb, bass, cod, haddock, salmon, tuna, duck, turkey, chicken, etc.
Foods NOT permitted during Unleavened Bread
Foods having yeast, or other "rising or fermenting" action. A few common ones are: beans, rice, peas, lentils, peanuts, mustard, corn, soy, and all legumes.
Foods made from or containing oats, wheat, barley, spelt, rye, unless marked "For Passover"
Unclean meats (as outlined in Leviticus 11) such as pig (pork), coney, hare, catfish, marlin, clam, crab, crayfish, shrimp, albatross, heron, raven, etc.
Be mindful, Kosher is a Jewish term, not a Biblical term. All Kosher foods are NOT permitted. (Companies pay money for a Rabbi to certify the foods as "Kosher" with the "K" symbol).
Bottom Line: Read the labels.
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FIRST FRUITS
The Feast of First Fruits is the God given reminder of the efficacy of Jesus’ resurrection to produce eternal life for the believer.
Jesus’ ascension after his resurrection was the acceptable First Fruits offering to the Father (John 20:15-17). As a result of Jesus’ actions he blessed and sanctified all those who believe in him. Jesus is indeed the firstborn among many brethren. His resurrection and ascension validate his dominion over death and provides access to the promise of eternal life for every believer (John 17:1-3).
PENTECOST
Pentecost, also called the Feast of Weeks, took place 50 days after Passover began. It is considered the second most important of all the Feasts of the Lord; it is one of the three occasions on which all males were required to appear before the Lord in the temple.
It was a reaffirmation of Yahweh's covenant with His people; the successful harvest (grain harvest) proved that He had taken care to sustain them through the previous year.
It was believed that Moses brought the Ten Commandments down from Sinai 50 days after the original Passover in Egypt, the feast became a commemoration of the giving of the Torah and the Covenant of Sinai.
For Christians, Pentecost celebrates the miracle of the birth of the Church, a dramatic affirmation that God's plan of redemption applies to all the world's people, not the Jews alone. The gift of the Holy Spirit that day was considered to be the dawn of a new age in which believers then and now were enjoined to become missionaries until the Gospel message is heard "to the end of the earth." The Holy Spirit empowers believers to take this message to all the earth.
TRUMPETS
On the first day of the seventh month the Feast of Trumpets introduces or announces the Feast of Tabernacles by blowing of trumpets. It is a festival of trumpets sounding throughout the land and calling the nation to prepare for the Day of Atonement, the day of national cleansing. The Feast of Trumpets teaches repentance; it calls upon every person to repent and confess their sins before God.
We must repent of our sins before we can be forgiven by God, but repentance alone is not enough. Everyone must turn toward Jesus, accepting His atoning sacrifice at Calvary and receiving Him in joy - unfathomable, everlasting, and indescribable - which this world cannot give or take away. Understanding and experiencing this Feast will enrich the lives of believers in Christ.
This Feast of Trumpets is not a feast based on Judaism; it is not based on the religion of the rabbis. It is based on the Word God gave to His people. This is the Lord's feast. The Scripture must not be confused with tradition.
When the trumpet (shofar) blows, it is to cause us to be alert. Consider Romans 13:11, " . . . it is high time to awake out of sleep . . . "
ATONEMENT
The Day of Atonement is to cause one to recognize there is no way to be perfect on his own. On this day God judged the sins of the whole nation. Thus, it became known as “Day of Judgment.” It was on this one day of the year that the high priest went behind the veil, into the holy of holies with the blood of the sacrifice. Christ’s shed blood atones for our past sins; atonement means reconciliation. The Day of Atonement symbolizes the reconciliation of God and all humanity.
According to Leviticus Chapter 16, on the Day of Atonement, the High Priest was to present two goats before the Lord. He would then cast lots over the goats to determine which would be offered to the Lord and which would be led into the wilderness as the scapegoat. The goat on which the Lord’s lot fell was offered as a sin offering. Jesus fulfilled the spiritual aspects of the Day of Atonement when He went into the heavenly holy of holies with his own blood for the sins of the world. Through this, we receive forgiveness when we repent of our sins, and with a broken and contrite spirit accept Jesus as the innocent substitutionary sacrifice who died in our place. At that moment our future is sealed by the Holy Spirit, and our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
The Day of Atonement teaches about the forgiveness of sin and our reconciliation with God through Christ’s sacrifice. All people suffer the consequences of sin. But sin doesn’t happen without a cause; God makes this cause clear in the symbolism associated with the Day of Atonement. This Day symbolizes the reconciliation of God and all humanity, the removal of the “cause” of sin, Satan; so that sin is dealt with once and for all (Hebrews 9:12-14). This Day serves as a vital preparatory step in anticipation of the next milestone in God’s glorious Holy Day plan beautifully depicted by the Feast of Tabernacles.
TABERNACLES
What is Sukkoth? Sukkoth was the first "stopping off" place for the Israelites on their journey out of Egypt at the time of the Exodus. The name is explained in Genesis 33:17: "And Jacob journeyed to Succoth: and built for himself a house, and made booths for his livestock, therefore the place is named Succoth. The Hebrew word Sukkoth means "huts." The Biblical name for this celebration is the Feast of Tabernacles, or Feast of Booths. It is also called the Festival of Ingathering. Tabernacles is the last of the three feasts which the Lord commanded Israel to appear before Him with an offering.
According to Exodus 23:16 and Leviticus 23:43, Tabernacles is a thanksgiving for the harvest, and a commemoration (remembering) of the time when Israel dwelt in tents during their journey through the wilderness.
Do these things have a meaning for the Church today? Yes. Leviticus 23:2 tells us these are the "feasts of the Lord." He gave them to Israel, His people. He did not want them to be ignorant of His plan and purpose. We, too, are God's people. Thus, we celebrate the feasts of the Lord.
All nations have holidays that are important to them. The Kingdom of God is no different. The days that are important to us are the days that point to the plan of God in reconciling His people unto Himself. The Feast of Tabernacles points to God's prosperity and provisions for His people. We can rejoice in this fact that in His Kingdom, God has already blessed us with all spiritual blessings in Christ Jesus.
Just as Israel remembers its deliverance from bondage in Egypt, we can remember and rejoice in our deliverance from bondage to the world. Just as the booths were temporary dwellings for the Israelites, we can understand that our mortal, corruptible bodies are also temporary. "For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. (II Cor. 5:1)
Through the symbol of the sukkoth, God wants us to recognize the flimsiness, impermanence and insecurity of all earthly, man-made dwellings. He wants us to know the security, rest, and joy that come in God alone!
It is during Tabernacles when Jesus will return. Then God will dwell (tabernacle) with man. Hallelujah!
