Seasons Of The Lord – His Rhythm Of Chaim – Life

As we are quickly approaching the season of

the last 3 of the annual Appointed Times of the Lord –

His Moedim – according to

Leviticus 23

one question that often arises is..

Why study them at all?

Ephesians 2:14: For He is our peace, the One Who has made both things into one and Who has loosed the dividing wall of the fence, cause of the enmity to His flesh, 15. by His nullifying the tradition of the commandments by decrees, so that He could create the two, Jewish and non-Jewish, into One New Man, establishing peace 16. so He could reconcile both in one body to God through the cross, as God killed their enmity by means of Y’shua. 17. And when He came He proclaimed the Good News of peace to you, to those far away, and peace to those near: 18. because through Him we both have the introduction to the Father by means of one Spirit. 19. Therefore then, you are no longer aliens and strangers, but you are fellow citizens of the saints and members of the household of God, 20. building upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Messiah Y’shua being His cornerstone, 21. in Whom the whole building being constructed is being fit together into a holy sanctuary in the Lord, 22. and in Whom you are built together into a habitation of God by the Spirit.

We need to understand what we are grafted into.

The above passage, originally written to Gentiles and former heathens, tells us that all are to worship the Living God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, The King of the Universe, the God Who became flesh and walked among us.

The 7 individual Appointed Times or Moedim, have been covered in multiple earlier posts however, not altogether. Several requests have been received to do so and to explain the Seasons of the Lord as given in Leviticus 23; and especially for new visitors to the site.

An overview follows:

The traditions of the Jewish people are described so we can see spiritual meanings in these God Appointed Holy days; and as believers and followers of Jesus the Messiah/ Yeshua HaMashiach, we are encouraged to return to His Word and to obey the Lord’s commands to observe His Seasons. The rhythm of life/chaim, is cyclical and exhorts believers to seek our Heavenly Fathers’ wisdom in following Scripture and in celebrating the same Holy Days that Jesus/Yeshua did.

The ecclesia/body of Messiah, has a responsibility to understand and appreciate its’ Hebraic Heritage; which are the true roots of our christianity. (Israelite/Hebrew/Jewish Roots), and to finally recognize that Yeshua/Jesus was born Jewish, that He grew up Jewish, and that He is the same today as He was then. (Hebrews 13:8) Readers will understand that ALL the Scriptures in the Bible are alive and relevant for believers today. They were embraced and quoted by Jesus/Yeshua, and every writer of the New Testament/Brit Chadashah.

Today it is important for us to understand what a word, an expression, the idioms, cultural concepts and definitions meant to those who wrote the passages.

His Appointed Times/God’s Moedim, showing His rhythm of chaim/life reveals the Hebraic Heritage of our Bible and of Jesus/Yeshua. Isaiah prophesied about Messiah’s followers coming into their heritage.

Moedim מועדים

Mo-ahd also has a root meaning, to repeat,

and can mean

a signal as appointed beforehand.

There are things that are to be repeated each time the preset appointed time has come. Today when children have birthdays or couples have anniversaries, the signals or signs are cards, cakes and gifts, and is an annual event. It is the same with our Heavenly Fathers’ appointed times.

These Moedim/feasts are signals and signs 

to help us know what is on His heart.

This one will say: ‘I am the Lord God’s,’ and the other one will call [himself] by the name of Jacob; this one will sign his allegiance to the Lord God, and adopt the name of Israel. Isaiah 44:5

Remember the Torah of Moses my servant, which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel, with the statutes and judgments. Malachi 3:2

Jesus/Yeshua Himself said:“Do not think that I came to annul, to bring an incorrect interpretation to, the Torah or the Prophets: I did not come to annul but to bring spiritual abundance, for the Torah to be obeyed as it should be and God’s promises to receive fulfillment.

For truly I say to you: until the sky and the Earth would pass away, not one yod or one vav could ever pass away from the Torah, until everything would come to pass. Matthew 5:17,18

As we read of the many Israelite/Hebrew/Jewish customs, it will bring Christians into a deeper appreciation of our grafted in heritage and what all the authors of the New Testament believed.

Paul tells us we are grafted in to the Jewish, domestic, olive tree Romans 11:17.

As in the natural, when a branch is grafted in it does not produce the domestic olive, but the wild olive of its nature. The advantage of the graft is that the strength of the root is added to the grafted branch, to produce stronger fruit.

Christians are to produce new fruit of Torah-believing, Scripture-based worshippers of the Most High God.

The separation from our Jewish roots was a deliberate act by the early Church to erase the Israelite/Hebrew/Jewish heritage, which included God’s appointed times/seasons. Any separation hinders our relationship with our Heavenly Father.

Jesus said, I AM the Good Shepherd and I know My sheep and My sheep know Me, 15. just as the Father knows Me and I know the Father, and I lay down My life on behalf of the sheep. 16. But I also have sheep that are not from this sheepfold: and it is necessary for Me to lead those and they will hear My voice, and they will become one flock, one Shepherd. John 10:14-16. See Ezekiel 34:23, 37:24.

We are to study the Jewish traditions and glean the spiritual meanings, because many of those traditions are anointed and give beautiful insight. Then we are to focus on the Scriptural basis for each Jewish tradition, and be led by His Word to bring change in the way we worship and celebrate the Seasons of the Lord. Paul admonished the Corinthians in his first letter to them,

4:6. And these things, brothers, by what I have said of myself and Apollos I have shown you what applies to all Christian teachers, so that you would learn through us ‘Not to go beyond what has been written, Scripture,’ so that you would not be proud on behalf of the one against another.

We are to go to what, Christians call Old Testament, which Paul called Scripture, which is the Jewish Tanakh.

Understanding the Jewishness of Jesus/Yeshua and the Jewish customs brings light to many hidden truths in the New Testament and brings us closer to God’s truth. These posts will hopefully draw Christians into a desire to study about their Jewish roots/heritage and to begin to follow the Biblical call to do the things presented in Scripture. Jesus/Yeshua honored His Fathers Appointed Seasons…

Should we do less?

There are two terms we need to understand, Torah and Tanakh. The Torah refers specifically to the first five books of the Bible. Tanakh is the inclusion of Torah, Prophets and Writings:

Prophets includes the books of Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, and Isaiah through Malachi except for Daniel.

When used in the New Testament the term Torah and Prophets often refers to the entire Hebrew Scriptures (Tanakh), known as the Old Testament/Covenant. In most of our translations the word Torah is translated as Law, because of our western concept of what law is, it has caused Christians to think that the Old Testament is a rigid, authoritarian book that no longer has application to our lives.

Torah is the correct word because its Hebrew meaning is teaching or instruction. What we are given is our Heavenly Fathers’ instruction and teaching on relationships with Him and with other human beings.

With this in mind whenever we read the word law, we should change it to say Torah /teaching or instruction. However when Paul was writing about legalism in Romans, Galatians, and Colossians here the word law is appropriate; these being the only exceptions.

Again it is good to remind ourselves that Jesus/Yeshua was born to Israelite/Hebrew/Jewish parents and was brought up keeping the commandments of the Tanakh/Old Testament. His Jewishness is obvious because, after His birth, Mary and Joseph immediately followed all the commandments regarding circumcision, purification, and dedication. He was circumcised at eight days old as recorded in Luke2:21.

And when the eight days were completed to circumcise Him His name was called Jesus, being called that by the angel to the one who conceived Him in her womb.

At thirty-three days He was dedicated; that is, offered and redeemed at the temple.

This was ordered in Exodus 13:2, 12, 13, & 15.

13:2. Sanctify to me all the firstborn, whatever opens the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast; it is mine.

13:12. That you shall set apart to the Lord all that opens the matrix, and every firstling that comes of a beast which you have; the males shall be the Lord’s.

13:13. .. and all the firstborn of man among your children shall you redeem.

13:15. And it came to pass, when Pharaoh would hardly let us go, that the Lord slew all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man, and the firstborn of beast; therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all that opens the matrix, being males; but all the firstborn of my children I redeem. For the mother’s purification we have ; Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives, and bears a male child; then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her menstruation, shall she be unclean. 3. And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. 4. And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying for thirty-three days; she shall touch no consecrated thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled. (Leviticus 12:2-4)

Mary’s purification was recorded in Luke 2:22. And when the days of their purification were completed according to the Torah of Moses, they brought Him up to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord, 23. just as it has been written in the Torah of the Lord that every male opening the womb will be called holy to the Lord.

Mary’s purification and Yeshua/Jesus’ dedication, that is His offering and redemption, were made simultaneously as ordered in those verses.

Joseph and Mary regularly attended the feasts in Jerusalem and as Yeshua/Jesus matured He went through a ceremony similar to today’s Bar Mitzvah to give evidence of His knowledge and that He was now to be considered an adult, reported in:

Luke 2:41-47. 41. And His parents were going to Jerusalem from year to year to the Feast of Passover. 42. And when He was twelve years old, they went up for the feast according to their custom and for His Bar Mitzvah (coming of age) 43. and when the days were completed, on their return the child Jesus remained in Jerusalem, but His parents did not know that. 44. And thinking He was in the caravan they came a day on the way and they were searching for Him among their relatives and acquaintances, 45. but when they did not find Him they returned to Jerusalem looking for Him. 46. Then it happened after three days they found Him in the temple, sitting in the middle of the teachers and listening to them and questioning them: 47. and all those who heard Him were amazed over His understanding and answers.

At the beginning of His ministry Yeshua/Jesus was baptized, immersed, in the Jordan River. The Greek word Baptisma means Immersion and the Jewish people had been immersing themselves for purification for many generations before the birth of Messiah. Baptism/Immersion for purification was made after someone became unclean and was considered defiled, such as by contact with a corpse or blood, or when someone who had not been worshipping repented and returned/made teshuvah to the Lord.

Those repenting were the ones that were called by John and later by Yeshua/Jesus, Who said in Matthew 4:17. You must continually repent: for the kingdom of the heavens has come near.

Yeshua/Jesus continued to go to Jerusalem/Yerushalayim to celebratethe Appointed Times of the Lord during His ministry,

John recorded His attendance at more feasts than any other Gospel which gives us the chronology, so we can determine that He ministered for three and a half years.

Passover/Pesach is mentioned at three distinctly different times, Sukkot (Tabernacles) and Hanukkah are both mentioned and a further unnamed feast in John 5:1 could possibly be Shavuot/Pentecost however some believe John 5:1 to be another Passover/Pesach.

In John the Appointed times are:

2:13 And the Passover of the Jewish people was drawing near, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

(Attendance at Pesach/Passovers is also recorded in Chapters. 12 & 13.)

5:1. After these things there was a feast of the Jewish people and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.

7:2 & 14. 2. And the Feast of Booths of the Jewish people was near. 14. And now, in the middle of the feast, Jesus went up to the temple and He was teaching.

10:22. At that time it was the Feast of Dedication for those in Jerusalem. It was winter, 23. and Jesus was walking in the temple, on Solomon’s Porch.

The Hebrew name for this feast is Hanukkah/Chanukkah. Messiah Jesus taught that every letter of the Hebrew Scriptures was important, and throughout the Gospels there are many other references to indicate He attended the Appointed Times/feasts Matthew 5:17. Do not think that I came to abolish the Torah or the Prophets: I did not come to abolish but to bring spiritual abundance. 18. For truly I say to you: until the sky and the earth would pass away, not one yod or one vav could ever pass away from the Torah, until everything would come to pass.

The word translated yod is iota, the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew letter yod, the smallest letter of the Hebrew alphabet. The word translated vav is more involved because there is no “v” sound in the Greek language. To express the letter “v” in Greek, both Matthew and Luke in 16:17, used the word keraia, which means small horn or hook. The word vav in Hebrew is more than just the name of a letter. It is a word that means hook, so Matthew and Luke used keraia to indicate that Messiah was referring to the vav, which is the 2nd smallest letter in the Hebrew alphabet. Not only are the yod and vav the two smallest letters in Hebrew, but they are also called soft letters because they can at times be left out of a word and the word would not be misspelled. Here Yeshua/Jesus was saying that even the letters that can legitimately be left out of a word would not be left out of the Torah or the Prophets. He criticized the Pharisees for certain interpretations of Scripture in Matthew 23:23, because even though they were tithing herbs often grown in very small gardens, even just flower pots, they were missing the higher things on which we are to focus. This attention to minor details is called legalism, and sadly is still alive today in churches, with rules/requirements of various kinds, whether hairstyles/coverings, dress codes, rules on divorce, dancing, praise and worship, etc.

Remember Paul’s reference in Galatians 2:4 to the freedom we have, speaking of the freedom from legalism through grace and focus on the spirit of the Scriptures. We are to look to the Lord and not at what other congregations are doing, either to copy or criticize. We’re to be led by Scripture and His Holy Spirit, not by the letter, as we return to the Hebrew Scriptures to honor the Appointed times/Seasons of the Lord.

Times and Seasons

While preparing for the return of its Jewish Messiah, the Ecclesia/Church, is being encouraged to understand its Israelite/hebrew heritage by Honoring the Appointed Times/Seasons of the Lord because they bring a cycle of thanksgiving to our Heavenly Father, an annual celebration through humble repentance to a joyful passion for life. They are sometimes referred to as the Feasts of Israel, but when they are listed in Leviticus 23 they are called the Seasons of the Lord; and focus on the seasons in which we are to honor Him each year. These appointed times form the framework of Godly living that is to become a pattern for us as we see our Messiah Jesus prophetically revealed in each one.

Leviticus 23:1.And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2. Speak to the people of Israel, and say to them, ‘The seasons of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy gatherings, these are My seasons.’

The first one is probably the one we are most familiar with in English called Passover and in Hebrew: celebrated on Nisan 14, which falls between mid-March and mid- April. In Scripture this month is called Aviv, meaning Spring.

It is symbolized by a meal called a Seder with a special plate, which has spaces for each traditional food item.

Its purpose is to remember God delivering the Hebrew children/Israelites from their Egyptian bondage.

Leviticus 23:4. These are the appointed seasons of the Lord, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their appointed season. 5. In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at dusk, is the Lord’s Passover.

פָּ֫סַח pesach

Passover is the time when the blood of a lamb protected each home from the death of the firstborn. Itis anniversary is the day when the Lamb of God, His Firstborn, gave Himself to protect and deliver us from spiritual bondage, to give us total freedom and salvation. The lamb is killed immediately after the sun sets which begins the 14th of Nisan.

Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year; you shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats; And you shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month; and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. (Exodus 12:5 & 6)

The Seder meal is eaten according to the command in Exodus: In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the twenty first day of the month at dusk. (Exodus 12:18)

Passover is celebrated with readings of the wilderness travels, remembering the bondage from which they were delivered and includes the story of the Exodus based on Exodus 13:8. Psalms and other songs are sung, making this a very festive evening with the Lord.

And you shall tell your son in that day, saying, This is done because of that which the Lord did to me when I came forth out of Egypt. 9. And it shall be for a sign to you upon your hand, and for a memorial between your eyes, that the Lord’s Torah may be in your mouth; for with a strong hand has the Lord brought you out of Egypt.

You shall therefore keep this ordinance in his season from year to year. Verse 14 reinforces this, And it shall be when your son asks you in time to come, saying, What is this? that you shall say to him, By strength of hand the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the house of slavery;

For us we are reminded of the deliverance from the world systems and its bondages and of the call of God upon our lives. The reason for the Exodus was the future Promised Land; And the purpose and goal of the Exodus was the creation of a Kingdom of Priests.

Exodus 19:6. And you shall be to me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation… Verse 10 says And the Lord said to Moses, Go to the people, and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes.

Isaiah 61:6. But you shall be named the Priests of the Lord; men shall call you the Ministers of our God; you shall eat the wealth of the nations, and in their riches you shall glory. Israel is the Holy People,

Leviticus 20:24, But I have said to you, You shall inherit their land, and I will give it to you to possess it, a land that flows with milk and honey; I am the Lord your God, which have separated you from other people.

Leviticus 26:12, And I will walk among you, and will be your God, and you shall be my people.

Deuteronomy 7:6. For you are a holy people to the Lord your God; the Lord your God has chosen you to be a special people to himself, above all peoples that are upon the face of the earth.

Deuteronomy 14:2. For you are a holy people to the Lord your God, and the Lord has chosen you to be a special people to himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.

Deuteronomy 28:9. The Lord shall establish you as a holy people to himself, as he has sworn to you, if you shall keep the commandments of the Lord your God, and walk in his ways.

Paul tells us that we have been grafted in to this Holy People in Romans 11:17. But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, since you are a wild olive, were yourself grafted in them, then you would be a participant for yourself of the richness of the root of the olive tree. 18. You must stop boasting of the branches: but, if you do boast, you do not support the root, but the root supports you.

The Sabbath that falls immediately before Passover helps people to prepare as this day is called The Great Sabbath, Shabbat HaGadol in Hebrew, probably because in the synagogue on this day the book of Malachi is read:

Lo, I will send the prophet Elijah to you before the arrival of the Messiah.

The Messiah is expected during the coming feast. The rabbis have determined that Messiah’s arrival will bring about the resurrection of the dead, expecting resurrection during this feast.

This seems to have been fulfilled and recorded in the gospels:

Matthew 27:52-53 KJV. 52 And the graves were opened; and many bodies of the saints which slept arose, 53 And came out of the graves after his resurrection, and went into the city.

Passover/Pesach, is the 1st feast of the Hebrew/Israelite/Jewish year.

While Scripture specifies one night, the 14th of the month Aviv, outside of Israel Passover is celebrated for two nights.

As mentioned the meal is called Seder, which is a Hebrew word meaning Order, the first Seder is eaten on Nisan 14 in the synagogue, the 2nd Seder on Nisan 15 in the home. In the modern calendar the month of Aviv is now called Nisan.

The Exodus story is written in a booklet called Haggadah, which is a Hebrew word meaning Telling. The whole family is involved in the preparation, which includes spring cleaning making sure that all leaven, (symbolic of sin), is removed from the home.

In the west, these days have been renamed easter and in our traditions we also have shrove tuesday, in which any fat is used up and the days of fasting which are called lent etc.and include ash Wednesday.

Everyone attending each Seder meal is involved in the telling/Haggadah.

Traditions using certain symbols that add to the Passover telling include:

Reclining, though few actually recline these days, it represents freedom, luxury, and release from Egyptian slavery. The furnished room mentioned in Mark 14:15 would have had a low table with cushions around the table for the diners to recline while eating.

The elements of the meal:

Lamb shank bone, roasted, represents the paschal sacrifice.

Bitter herbs, called Maror, represent the bitterness of their lives as slaves. Horseradish is normally used for this.

Haroset, a blend of fruit, nuts, and wine, represents the mortar they used when as slaves they put up buildings for Pharaoh.

Karpas, a vegetable, usually parsley or celery, to be dipped in salt water, represents the tears shed by the slaves.

Salt water or vinegar for the Karpas.

Red wine represents the blood of the lamb

For more link below:

https://www.minimannamoments.com/midweek-mannabite-secrets-of-the-seder-plate/

Matsah, the bread made without leaven/yeast, represents the haste in leaving Egypt and also the absence of sin, since leaven represents sin.

Matsah resembles large crackers:

Three are taken to be used as symbols. The middle one of these is broken in half, with half, called afikoman, being wrapped in a napkin and hidden until the end of the meal. The afikoman is to be found by the children at dessert time, who bargain with the adults for its return. Afikoman is a Greek word meaning “I have come.”

For more link below: 

https://www.minimannamoments.com/afikomen-mysterious-and-hidden/

Four questions are asked by children because Exodus 13:14 says And it shall be when your son asks you in time to come, saying, What is this? The answers must be given so that the child can understand.

The questions are:

Why is this night different from all other nights, why on all other nights, do we eat leavened bread and Matsah; on this night we eat only Matsah?

Why, on all other nights, do we eat all kinds of herbs: on this night, we eat mainly bitters?

Why, on all other nights, do we not dip even once; on this night, we dip twice?

Why on all other nights, do we eat either sitting straight or reclining; on this night, we all recline?

Four cups of wine are served.

The ancient rabbis used wine to signify covenant and the wine at the Seder is a reminder of these promises from

Exodus 6:6. Therefore say to the children of Yisrael, I am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the burdens of Mitzraim (Egypt), and I will deliver you out of their bondage, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm, and with great judgments: 7. and I will take you to me for a people, and I will be to you a God: and you shall know that I am the Lord your God, who brings you out from under the burdens of Mitzraim (Egypt).

Each cup represents a promise that was fulfilled in the Exodus:

and I will bring (v’hotseti) you out from under the burdens of Egypt.

and I will deliver (v’hitsalti) you out of their bondage

and I will redeem (v’galti) you with an outstretched arm

and I will take (v’lakachti) you to me for a people

Each “you” in these verses is plural, meaning these promises are for the whole body.

What we call communion is a very shortened form of the Seder, the Passover feast.

The rabbis teach that all the promises to Abraham apply to:

the wilderness,

to Israel, and

to the age to come.

These promises to take us out from under the burdens of Egypt also apply to the wilderness, to Israel, and to the age to come.

The first cup is the promise to take us out of Egypt, which today represents the world system.

In the Synagogue Seder, and in the home to welcome the Sabbath, this cup is called the Kiddush, the Sanctification, to sanctify the table in the home for the evening’s service.

In the Church today this is salvation as those who are born again leave the world system for the things of God.

The second cup is the deliverance from bondage, when the slavery ended, called the cup of Deliverance.

Every member of the body is to be delivered from

rejection, lust, low self-esteem, anger, jealously, depression, unforgiveness, and all the other ploys of the enemy. The vast majority of the Church has not understood this and does not accept deliverance, but deliverance is real and is for all who want it – and take it.

The third cup, the cup of Redemption, took place when the Red Sea opened for the Israelites, then closed to claim the Egyptian army. This is the first miracle to defy the laws of nature. It commemorates the physical departure from Egypt and speaks of the miracle of our redemption.

Why does redemption follow deliverance?

Many look at redemption as simply another word for salvation, but it is much more than that. His cry is for us to know Him, which means intimacy. God put deliverance first so we will be free to have true intimacy with Him.

The fourth cup, “I shall take you” reminds us of His carrying the children of Israel through the desert for 40 years and finally into the Promised Land. It also speaks of our walk with Him in the earth and taking us into eternal life to be with HIm.

This fourth cup is called the Cup of Elijah, and is poured for Elijah to drink. The youngest child who is able goes to the door to see if Elijah is coming to herald the Messiah. Eevry time we take communion we are to remember that we are drinking the cup as spoken by Messiah in Luke 22:20. Then likewise the cup after they ate, saying “This is the cup of the New Covenant in My blood which is being poured out on your behalf.”

For more link below:

 https://www.minimannamoments.com/13-for-supper-and-only-4-cups/

Both in the synagogue Seder and the home meal, along with other appropriate songs, they close with the singing of Psalms 113 through 118

Which are called “The Hallel,” meaning Praise. This was what they sang before going out to gethsemane

Matt 26:30 And when they had sung a hymn, they went out unto the mount of Olives.

A Seder Haggadah is much more detailed than this brief outline.

As most of us always sit at a table, the position of reclining is not understood by modern standards, in John 13: 23. One of His disciples, whom Jesus loved, was next to Jesus. 24. Then Simon Peter beckoned to him to ask whoever might be the one about whom He was speaking. 25. So that one, in front of Jesus, said to Him, “Lord, who is it?”

These are often translated “leaning on Jesus’ bosom” (verse 23) and “lying on Jesus’ breast” (verse 25), but these are idioms referring to the person next to or in front of someone. The couches or cushions were placed at an angle to the table so each person would not take up more than one space at the table. Each would lie on one side, which meant that the next person would be in front, spoken of as being or lying on the bosom of that person. See mmm

Luke 16 has another reference to this: 23. And in Hades, as he was in torment, when he lifted up his eyes he saw Abraham from afar and Lazarus in his bosom.

There are two meanings for being in the bosom of Abraham.

For people on earth it means to be in the place of honor at a banquet.

For those in heaven it means to share the bliss that Abraham enjoys, as the saint reclines in front of Abraham at the heavenly banquet table.

Now, however, I am on my way to Jerusalem in the service of the saints there. For Macedonia and Achaia were pleased to make a contribution for the poor among the saints in Jerusalem. They were pleased to do it, and indeed they owe it to them. For if the Gentiles have shared in the Jews’ spiritual blessings, they owe it to the Jews to share with them their material blessings. (Romans 15:25-27)

It is an indisputable fact that everything pertaining to salvation has come to us through the Jewish people: the patriarchs, the prophets, the Bible, our Savior, the apostles, the gospel and the church.

Nothing connects the church more clearly to Israel and her Jewish roots than the Feast of Passover. This first of the feasts of the Lord is celebrated in memory of the great exodus out of Egypt through the blood of the Lamb. But it was also during the last Passover meal together with His Jewish disciples, in celebration of this exodus out from Egypt, that Jesus instituted the new covenant in His own blood, a celebration we now call communion.

When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. And He said to them, ‘I have greatly desired with a longing to eat this Seder with you before I suffer: 16. for I say to you that I would not eat it again until this would be fulfilled in the kingdom of God.’ 17. Then having taken a cup, after He gave thanks, He said, ‘You must take this and you must immediately share it among yourselves: 18. for I say to you, that from now on I am not drinking from this product of the vine until the kingdom of God would come.’ 19. Then having taken bread, after He gave thanks, He broke it and gave it to them saying, ‘This is My body which is being given on your behalf: you must continually do this in My remembrance.’ 20. Then likewise the cup after they ate, saying, ‘This is the cup of the New Covenant (Jer 31:31-34) in My blood which is being poured out on your behalf.’ Luke 22:14-20

It is tragic how the “Church” has paid back the debt we owe to the Israeite/Jewish people. It is a debt without measurable price for without them there would be no Messiah! In 196 AD, where not one Jewish believer was present, a council meeting in Caesarea determined that the resurrection of Jesus/Yeshua should be celebrated on a Sunday during the Feast of Eishtar/Ishtar, a pagan goddess, instead of during the third day of Passover on the Feast of First Fruits,

Leviticus 23:9-11 and 1 Corinthians 15:4,20-23.

Later in 325 AD at the universal Council of Nicea I, this practice became official dogma. The decision was based on the argument that: ‘it is not fitting for the Church in her celebration of the Lord’s death and resurrection to be connected with the cursed Jewish nation that crucified Him.’ (Please note this is a quote NOT the writers’ words or beliefs!)

This has remained so ever since and most of us have grown up not knowing any difference or the origin of what we believe! How sad it is to realize that the Church/ecclesia, that God called to provoke Israel to jealousy, abandoned her Hebrew/Israelite/Jewish roots/heritage and identity; and because of this attitude we have robbed our Savior /Messiah of His Jewishness, yet scripture records that He lived His whole life as an observant Jew!

Just as Israel gave birth to the ‘Church’ in the 1st century, surely it would honor the Lord, if during Passover, His grafted-in children would gather together around a Passover Seder meal and communion, to remember our Israelite heritage and roots and the enormous debt we have towards the children of Israel for our eternal salvation.

Messiah spent that night with His disciples in prayer. We, too, could and maybe should, spend that night in prayer for other peoples salvation, It is because the LORD kept vigil that Passover night to bring them out of Egypt, on this night all the Israelites are to keep vigil to honor the LORD for the generations to come, which includes us.

Exodus 12:42 Brothers, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for the Israelites is that they may be saved. Romans 10:1 For if their rejection is the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance be but life from the dead? Romans 11:15

The Seder meal illustrates so clearly that our salvation is through Messiah/Jesus’ death and resurrection. We should remember that during the same night basically every Jewish person in the world, whether religious or not, is also gathered around a Seder meal, just like they have done every year, for almost 3,500 years and in fact is the oldest continuously observed religious feast in existence today.

UNLEAVENED BREAD in Hebrew is

Hag Hamatsot or Chag HaMatzot

Its’ purpose is to tell the children of God’s mighty hand in bringing deliverance to Israel. It is celebrated on Nisan 15, which occurs in March or April, and begins the day after Passover lasting for the next 7 days. As already noted this month is called Aviv, which is the Hebrew word for Spring.

This feast is symbolized by matzah bread, which is eaten not only on Passover, but also throughout the entire 7 days of Unleavened Bread.

Today, Passover and Unleavened Bread are combined and are usually just called Passover. The focus is on freedom from bondage, expressly for the purpose of worshipping God.

Leviticus 23:6. And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; seven days you must eat unleavened bread. 7. In the first day you shall have a holy gathering; you shall do no labor in it. 8. But you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord seven days; in the seventh day is a holy gathering; you shall do no labor in it.

This command to do no labor is different from the command in Exodus 20:8-10. The feast begins at sundown Nisan 15 with the 2nd Seder, this one celebrated in the home. This 2nd Seder is not a Scriptural mandate, but a traditional one.

The Rabbis teach that during the Feast of Unleavened Bread resurrection for judgment takes place.

Although Messiah Jesus was resurrected during Unleavened Bread, on First Fruits; the Appointed Time or Feast of the Lord called Judgment Day, takes place several months later, on what is called Rosh Hashanah, or the Day of Memorial.

The 7th/last day of the week of Unleavened Bread is to remind us of how the Red Sea was parted. The events of the 1st week of the exodus are:

Nisan 15, they traveled from Ramses to Sukkot

Nisan 16, they traveled from Sukkot to Eitam (Exodus 13:20)

Nisan 17, they retreated toward Egypt, and camped at Pihakhirot (Exodus 14:2)

Nisan 18, Pharaoh’s agents reported that three days had gone by and the Israelites were not returning (Exodus 14:5)

Nisan 19, 20, Pharaoh organized his forces & chased after the Israelites (Exodus 14:6-10)

Nisan 21, Red Sea splits open and the Israelites escaped. (Exodus 14:13-16)

The next of the 7 annual Moedim is called

FIRST FRUITS in Hebrew it is

Resheet K’tsirchem, meaning

Beginning of Your Harvest, or Your First Harvest.

Its purpose was to bring the Offering of First Fruits.

This occurred on Nisan 16, still in March or April, on the 2nd day of the week of Unleavened Bread.

It was symbolized by a basket of fruit simply because this offering was brought in a basket, however, the basket would normally have held barley because that is the crop harvested just before First Fruits.

As described in scripture, there are

3 First Fruits celebrations each year.

Leviticus 23:9. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 10. Speak to the people of Israel, and say to them, When you come to the land which I give to you, and shall reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest; 11. And he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, to be accepted for you; on the next day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. 12. And you shall offer that day when you wave the sheaf a male lamb without blemish of the first year for a burnt offering to the Lord. 13. And the meal offering of it shall be two tenth deals of fine flour mixed with oil, an offering made by fire to the Lord for a sweet savor; and the drink offering of it shall be of wine, the fourth part of a hin. 14. And you shall eat nor bread, nor parched grain, nor green ears, until the same day that you have brought an offering to your God; it shall be a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.

Each First Fruits of the 3 harvest festivals is, filled with joyful thanksgiving. The quantities brought to the temple were unspecified and never a great quantity; one basket carried a family’s offering, however a king brought a basket that required two people to carry it.

Deuteronomy 26:1. And it shall be, when you come in to the land which the Lord your God gives you for an inheritance, and possess it, and live in it; 2. That you shall take of the first of all the fruit of the earth, which you shall bring of your land that the Lord your God gives you, and shall put it in a basket, and shall go to the place which the Lord your God shall choose to place his name there. 3. And you shall go to the priest who shall be in those days, and say to him, I declare this day to the Lord your God, that I have come to the country which the Lord swore to our fathers to give us. 4. And the priest shall take the basket from your hand, and set it down before the altar of the Lord your God.

The offering was presented as described in Deuteronomy 26:2, then the one presenting would say from Deuteronomy 26:5. And you shall speak and say before the Lord your God, ‘A wandering Aramean was my father, and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there with a few, and became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous; 6. And the Egyptians dealt ill with us, and afflicted us, and laid upon us hard slavery; 7. And when we cried to the Lord God of our fathers, the Lord heard our voice, and looked on our affliction, and our labor, and our oppression; 8. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great awesomeness, and with signs, and with wonders; 9. And he has brought us to this place, and has given us this land, a land that flows with milk and honey. 10. And now, behold, I have brought the first fruits of the land, which you, O Lord, have given me.’ And you shall set it before the Lord your God, and worship before the Lord your God; 11. And you shall rejoice in every good thing which the Lord your God has given to you, and to your house, you, and the Levite, and the stranger who is among you.

This portion in verses 5-10, was repeated by each one bringing a First Fruits offering to the temple and the First Fruits offered are defined in Deuteronomy 8:8. A land of wheat, barley, vines (grapes), fig trees, and pomegranates; a land of olive oil, and date-honey.

These were the only crops offered for First Fruits.

As noted, during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, barley was the crop that was being harvested and offered, although someone who had not been able to come to the previous First Fruits could bring that offering at the next First Fruits. This was a modest offering coming from just a few crops but it expresses commitment to God and thanksgiving to Him for His provision.

The Feast of Unleavened Bread ends with the reading of Psalm 93: 3. The floods have lifted up, O Lord, the floods have lifted up their voice; the floods lift up their roaring. 4. The Lord on high is mightier than the noise of many waters, than the mighty waves of the sea.

This is no doubt because in Exodus 14:13-16 the text shows that the Israelites crossed the Red Sea on their way out of Egypt on the 7th day.

Next is the Counting FROM the Omer, which is the

counting of the next

50 days from the First Fruits of Unleavened Bread to the First Fruits of Shavuot

and connects the first Fruits of Unleavened Bread to the next Season.

Omer means sheaf and these first two of the First Fruits were offerings for the harvesting of barley, then of wheat at the Feast of Shavuot/Pentecost at the end of counting the 50 days.

Messiah was resurrected on the First Fruits of Unleavened Bread, then, 40 days later He ascended, and 10 days after that, on Shavuot/Pentecost, His Holy Spirit was given. Thus the 50 days of Counting from the Omer tie His resurrection, ascension, and the giving of the baptism/outpouring of His Holy Spirit.

The term Pentecost comes from the

Greek Πεντηκοστή  Pentēkostē 

meaning: fiftieth.

It refers to the Jewish festival celebrated on the

fiftieth day after First Fruits,

also known as the Feast of Weeks

and the Feast of 50 days.

  Shavuot  שָׁבוּעוֹת

PART 2 will conclude the 7 appointed times.

 Can we say with the children of Israel?

  • כֹּל אֲשֶׁר-דִּבֶּר יְהוָה נַעֲשֶׂה וְנִשְׁמָע.

“All that God has spoken, will we do and obey.”

Exodus 24:7

Shalom shalom mishpachah/family

and cheverim/friends!

It’s all about Life and Relationship,

NOT Religion.

You are greatly loved and precious in His sight.

NOT SURE?

YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name. Amen.

WHY WAIT?

The disciples/talmidim were instructed to

tarry/wait

in the city of Jerusalem/Yerushalayim.

Luke 24 :49.

qavah is Hebrew for wait

לַחֲכוֹת

Tarry/wait/qavah in the city.

 More Hebrew words for wait 

verb לַחֲכוֹת await, hang on

verb לְהַמתִין await, hold on

verb לְיַחֵל hope, expect, look forward to

verb לְמַתֵן wait, moderate, slow down, temper, tone down

לחכות wait

 להמתין wait

 please wait a moment – בבקשה חכה רגע

Strong’s Hebrew: 6960. קָוָה (qavah) — wait

qavah: wait

Original Word: קָוָה
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: qavah
Phonetic Spelling: kaw-vaw’
Definition: to wait for

KJV: Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed:

INT: Indeed who wait not will be ashamed. Psalm 25:5

HEB: יִשְׁעִ֑י אוֹתְךָ֥ קִ֝וִּ֗יתִי כָּל־ הַיּֽוֹם׃

NAS: of my salvation; For You I wait all the day.

KJV: of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day.

INT: of my salvation for wait all the day. Psalm 25:21

There are a few words in Hebrew for wait. 

In Isaiah 40:31 we learn that those who 

wait upon the Lord will renew their strength.

This wait is qavah

which is a twisting or binding.

It is the word used for making rope and the ancient method of making rope is still used today.

Hundreds of thin strands of fabric, each one alone could easily be broken, but when tightly bound together they form a rope that cannot be broken.

We may here recall the scripture:

A cord of three strands is not quickly torn apart.

Ecclesiastes 4:12.

In some weddings, a three-cord braid is included as part of the ceremony, here the three cords that are not easily broken represent Our Heavenly Father, the bride and the groom.

So in Isaiah 40:31 this waiting is just not sitting back, doing nothing, it is a process of binding/blending/melding/merging ourselves with the Father and the more we bind ourselves to Him, the stronger we become.

In Isaiah 30:18, however, he uses a different word for wait.

which is the word chakah this is a:

patiently waiting,

like someone waiting for a train.  

However, this word is in a Piel or imperfect form,

so it has the meaning of:

a continuing process, it is patiently waiting.

יָחַל verb Niph`al – wait;
Pi`el – await (compare Late Hebrew יִחוּל expectation);
to Niph`al – Perfect feminine singular – נחֲלָה in Ezekiel 19:5
also
Imperfect: וַיִּיָּ֫חֶל in Genesis 8:12 + 1 Samuel 13:18 וַיּחֶל;

and 
wait: Genesis 8:12 and he waited yet seven days.

WAITING – CHAKAH – the Hebrew letters: 
 חכה – Cheth Kap Hei.

The word chakah is spelled:

Chet, Kap/Kaph, Hei/Hey.  

The Chet indicates:

moving to a higher level,

something like:

waiting in line and then moving forward.  

Our Father is patiently allowing us to go through our human/carnal ways, trying to satisfy all our needs by ourselves; then all of a sudden He appears next in line.  

Here we find the next letter in the word for

waiting – chakah 

which is the letter Kap/kaf

this has the picture word for: 

the palm of the hand.  

This shows us that all this time our Father has been holding out His hands in order to receive us; and finally after years of searching for answers, we ask Him to come into our lives.

The 3rd Hebrew letter in the word

to wait, chakah, is Hei

and is akin to:

the conclusion of His waiting, entering His presence which is filled with all of His graciousness and mercy.

Isaiah 30:18 tell us about it:

 blessed are those who chakah (wait) for Him.   

Our chakah is not in the sentence construction/parts of speech as a Hebrew Piel or imperfect form, it is a Hebrew Qal participle (a word formed from a verb (e.g., going, gone, being, been) and used as an adjective or noun.

This means in others words: 

blessed are those who

have been waiting for God. 

Without realizing it we have been waiting for Him all the time; we just did not know or understand it.   At least our Father’s waiting has been in the Hebrew (Piel Imperfect sentence construction) as in: He is waiting

rather than a (Piel Perfect) form which would say

He has waited.

Why is this important?

Because for us this means,

He hasn’t given up, He is still waiting. 

If that were in the form of

He has waited,

then, He would have given up a long time ago

and we would be without hope.

Another Hebrew word is

Strong’s Hebrew: 3176. יָחַל (yachal) — to wait, await

yachal: to wait, await

Original Word: יָחַל
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: yachal
Phonetic Spelling: yaw-chal’

In the following versions of Luke 24:49

English words used are:

remain and tarry

Berean Literal Bible
And behold, I am sending the promise of My Father upon you. But you, remain in the city until that you should be clothed with power from on high.”

King James Bible
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.

Amplified Bible
Listen carefully: I am sending the Promise of My Father [the Holy Spirit] upon you; but you are to remain in the city [of Jerusalem] until you are clothed (fully equipped) with power from on high.”

מט .הִּנֵהָאֹנכִיׁשֵֹלַחֵאתֲאׁשֶרִהְבטִיַחלָכֶםָאִב יוְַאּתֶםהֹוחִילּוּבָעִירְירּוׁשָלִַיםעַדִּכי

-ִתלְּבְׁשּועֹזמִָּמרֹום:

  1. Hee•ne ano•chi sho•le•ach et asher hiv•ti•ach la•chem Avi ve•a•tem ho•chi•loo ba•eer Ye•roo•sha•la•yim ad ki-til•be•shoo oz mi•ma•rom.

This must have been an extremely stressful time immediately following the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus/Yeshua. There was much unrest in the city which was filled with 1000’s of people who had travelled there for the Spring Meodim/Appointed Times of Passover/Pesach; which was one of the 3 annual Shalosh Regalim. Passover/Pesach/הַפֶּסַח, Pentecost/Shavuot/שבועות & Tabernacles/Sukkot/סוכות.

Though they are called Feasts by many, the correct Hebrew translation is Rehearsal Pattern because it is a rehearsal. It was/is a practice for the real thing to come, similar to rehearsals prior to a wedding ceremony; and why they were required to be in Jerusalem precisely at those times. We looked at this in previous posts.

This had been a momentous time; unlike any other previous year and the turmoil following those events had made the talmidim/disciples and followers of Messiah further targets for those who had plotted to kill Him.

On the road to Emmaus, one of them, named Cleopas, asked Him, “Are You the only visitor to Jerusalem who does not know the things that have happened there in recent days?”

verse 18.

Luke 24:13-24

In verse 25: Then Jesus said to them, “O foolish ones, how slow are your hearts to believe all that the prophets have spoken!…

This was confirming that HE WAS the fulfillment of Gods’ prophetic plan of redemption.

Luke 3:16
John answered all of them: “I baptize you with water, but One more powerful than I will come, the straps of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.

John 1:26
“I baptize with water,” John replied, “but among you stands One you do not know.

John 1:33
I myself did not know Him, but the One who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘The man on whom you see the Spirit descend and rest is He who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’

And while they were gathered together, He commanded them: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift the Father promised, which you have heard Me discuss. Acts 1: 5For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” 6

5For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” 6So when they came together, they asked Him, “Lord, will You at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7Jesus replied, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority.… But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”…

Strong’s Greek: 4037. περιμένω (perimenó) 1 Occurrence

Acts 1:4 V-PNA
GRK: χωρίζεσθαι ἀλλὰ περιμένειν τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν
NAS: Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father
KJV: but wait for the promise
INT: to depart but to await the promise

לחכות ל wait for

לחכות wait

The length of time they were told to wait was not just for a couple of days, it was for the next 49 days until Pentecost/Shavuot.

Yeshua/Jesus had said He had come to fulfill the Torah which has the Moedim/Appointed Times of the Lord as pivotal to the annual cycle of Israeli life.

We miss the full revelation of what Messiah accomplished as we in our western christianity and calendar festivals, jump from Passover/Resurrection Sunday (which we have called easter), to Christmas. There is a very precise sequence of Appointed Times/Moedim, whose meanings were prophetic in nature in their annual rehearsal for fulfillment in Messiahs’ life.

What was the purpose of this waiting?

He told them they would be

endued with power from on high

but why did they have to wait so long?

What does it mean for us?

The purpose of waiting is part of our training as talmidim/disciples.

It is for us to get into the right relationship to meet the requirements of our Heavenly Father and His Will not ours. Once those needs /requirements for being His child /disciple are met then He will open the doors and make the WAY clear for us to GO and DO and fulfill His will, plan and purposes.

One thing we should have learned during our 49 day walk/halak, it is this; we cannot artificially accelerate the growth of our crops and we cannot force them to produce out of season!

We need to see that we are not in control and being impatient will only cause frustration.

It will also choke the seeds and prevent them from bringing forth the harvest; which will result in us being impatient farmers with only barren and unfruitful fields. We must bear the fruit of patience if we are to grow in Messiah, without it we become impatient, impetuous, unsatisfied and are always looking for a future we cannot change. This is sad because it means we are ignoring what we have been blessed with today in the here and now.

Our training is accomplished by the power of His Spirit/Ruach within us, as we are also

endued with power from on high!

and for what?

To be witnesses to Him.

We must allow our lives to be slowly and continually transformed by the indwelling life of His Son; which is the ultimate purpose and goal ..that Jesus/Yeshua be exhibited in us.

This Shavuot/Pentecost, let’s be in an attitude of waiting after our days of preparation, and allow Him to do the necessary work in us and then He can fill us again. Just as we recharge batteries and continually refill our cars’ tanks with fuel, we need to be-being filled with His Spirit – continuously.. to go on being filled not just one time. Meaning to completely surrender our life and give Him full control. Ephesians 5:18 commands that we be filled with the Spirit. 1 Thessalonians 5:19 the command is given, “Do not put out the Spirit’s fire.” Paul gives the simple principle when he says, “Live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature” Gal. 5:16. The important experience of becoming a Spirit-filled disciple results in the progressive sanctification of a believer in Messiah. The result will be that the individual will manifest the fruit of the Spirit as stated in Galatians 5:22-23,

The 49 days leading up to Pentecost/Shavuot is a time of looking at our own lives and allowing God to do His work in us so He can work through us.

Hebrews 10:9 Behold I have come to do your will O God.

Jesus/Yeshuas life was one of obedience to His Father and He said Follow Me; so we are to be obedient to His/our Fathers will also.

We must take the time to be continually filled up or we will have nothing to pour out. If all we are doing is seeking to be blessed personally, we are missing the point of servanthood. We are blessed to be a blessing – freely we have received, freely we give. If we are always taking in/receiving, and not giving out, we will stagnate like the waters of a pool with no outflow; then we will become like the Dead sea and not a sea of Galilee. Living waters flow continually, that is what flowed through Messiah and what we are to release to others. Let Him pour into us so we can pour out.

For Them…?

The time of waiting was not a new thing for the disciples as every year the counting of 7 weeks or 49 days from the Omer following Peasch/Passover to Shavuot/Pentecost/Weeks was part of the Spring Feasts/Moedim/Appointed Times of the Lord which they followed every year.

Leviticus 23:1-2 God introduces His Moedim/Appointed Times when He begins by declaring to Moses

My appointed times are these….

This statement makes clear that these Moedim/Appointed Times, originate with our Heavenly Father, they cannot be claimed to have been appointed by any nation, including Israel. While they were initially given to the children of Israel for them to observe as their calendar/way of life, they are just as applicable to the followers of Messiah today.

  Many have grown up believing that the Jewish Feasts have nothing to do with the New Testament body of Messiah – the ecclesia, the called apart ones.  A few have grown up trying to take back the feasts and celebrate them, while rediscovering Christianity’s Hebrew Heritage. Some have never heard of the Feasts at all, however there are a growing number who are interested in what the Moedim/Appointed Times/Feasts of the Lord, have to impart to us prophetically.

Questions for us are: why are we ignoring what the Father has instructed us to do and why are we only understanding and remembering 2 of the 7?

We have the benefit of the completed Word of God so we can study His plan of redemption; and one of the ways in which He prophetically revealed His big picture plan, is through the Appointed Times/Moedim/Feasts of the Lord.  Approximately 4000 years ago, God commanded His people to gather in sacred assembly for very specific celebrations – His Feasts.

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying,  “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, These are the appointed feasts of the Lord that you shall proclaim as holy convocationsthey are my appointed feasts.  (Leviticus 23:1-2)

If we are not aware of the Moedim/Appointed Times when we read that verse, we do not understand the whole picture.

God commanded a yearly remembrance of each of His Holy convocations. The Hebrew word for sacred assembly or holy convocation is miqra, which carries the meaning of a dress rehearsal.  Every time these festivals are celebrated, it is a visual and spiritual aid to remind humanity of the prophetic plan of God.

Prior to each feast’s fulfillment, it points forwards to Messiah. 

During each feast’s fulfillment, it points directly at Messiah. 

Subsequent to each feast’s fulfillment, it points backwards to Messiah.

These seven appointed times are collectively called the mo’edim and are detailed in Exodus 12-13, Leviticus 23, Numbers 28-29 and Deuteronomy 16.  Together, they represent the Fathers’ entire redemptive plan from Messiah’s death through His millennial rule.

This is what Yeshua/Jesus was referring to in Matthew 5:17-18 when He said, “Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets.  I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.  For assuredly, I say to you, till heaven and earth pass away, one jot or one tittle will by no means pass from the law/teaching till all is fulfilled.” 

Because the common western understanding of fulfill

means done away with,

Christians have believed that Yeshua/Jesus meant the prophetic pictures pointing to Him are now no longer needed. This is not what He meant, because to Jewish rabbis at that time, the word that is translated into English as

fulfilled was understood to mean: 

the true or correct interpretation of Scripture,

while the word destroy meant: to give a false or incorrect interpretation. 

Yeshua/Jesus was telling them that:

He did not come to do away with the Hebrew Scriptures/or destroy i.e. lead them astray by false teachings 

Rather, He was:

the human embodiment of their true meaning and spiritual reality.

Again we can see other reasons for the WAITING…

First it was for their own preparation and

second because Messiah was not yet glorified.

As soon as He was glorified Acts 2:33 tells us:

therefore being exalted to the right hand of God and having received from the father the promise of the Holy Spirit/His Spirit of Holiness He poured out this which you now see and hear.

The second reason is in the statement in John where he clearly tells us in 7:39..

for the Holy Spirit was not yet given because Jesus was not yet glorified.

This is not the case for us today because His Spirit of Holiness/Ruach haKodesh, has been given and Messiah is glorified; our waiting is not dependent on the promised future outpouring; but rather on our own spiritual condition/preparation, to receive what is readily available.

We know from scripture that the influence and power of His Spirit were at work before Shavout/Pentecost because He was upon individuals, prophets, priests and kings of the Old Testament; and in some instances, He filled them with His Spirit: e.g. both John the Baptists parents. Luke 1:41

However, once Messiah was glorified in His ascension, His Spirit of Holiness/RuachHaKodesh, came into the world in an unrestricted way and has been here for the last 2000+ years. It is critical that we believe and receive this revealed truth that He is indeed here in our midst; and within each believer who welcomes His presence, influence and power. He will not force His presence upon us but patiently waits for us to invite Him in as we yield to His offer.

The attitude of receiving and welcoming His Spirit into our lives is to be the continual attitude of a believer. When we receive His Spirit we receive His life/chaim which revives us, imparting the same resurrection life that raised Him from the dead, which will quicken us and make us alive in Him.   Romans 8:11

As our ascended Messiah He is able to give New Life.

It’s not the so termed, baptism of His Holy Spirit, that changes people, but it is the power of the risen Messiah coming in to dwell in our lives that changes us through His Holy Spirit working from the inside out. We sometimes have a tendency to separate things that the New Testament/Brit Chadashah does not separate. The termed, baptism of His spirit of Holiness, is not an experience apart from Jesus/Yeshua – it is the real and living evidence of the risen Messiah.  He has given us chaim/life everlasting and full of glory.

John 17:3 This is eternal life that they may KNOW You  

it’s something that begins at new birth and never ends….

We often speak of types and shadows in the scriptures…

The giving of the Torah (teaching/law) at Sinai was the type/shadow

that was fulfilled at Shavuot/Pentecost.

Sinai marked the birth date of the dispensation of Torah/Teaching/Law, and involved great displays of God’s power through thunderings, lightning, fire and the sound of His reverberating voice.

The fulfillment at Shavuot/Pentecost was the giving of the Spirit of the Law to the followers of the Mashiach/Messiah. 

Shavuot/Pentecost, marks the birth date of the ecclesia/church/called apart ones, and what some term as the dispensation of Grace.

This occasion was also accompanied with great displays of God’s power through fire and a sound like a mighty rushing wind.  According to Ephesians 4:30, from this point onward, His Ruach HaKodesh/Spirit of Holiness dwells within each follower and seals the Body of Messiah for the day of redemption.

When the day of Pentecost arrived, they were all together in one place.  And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting.  And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them.  And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance. (Acts 2:1-4)

The gift of tongues is simply the Holy Spirit giving us the supernatural ability to speak in a foreign tongue/language that we have no knowledge or ability to speak out on our own.

There are two types of tongues He can give us. One is a tongue of this earth; e.g., if our native language is English, then He can give us the ability to speak in Chinese, Japanese, or Spanish, etc. For the simple reason we may be in that country or with people who speak that language and will understand it.

The other type of tongue that He can give us is a tongue direct from heaven, a heavenly language that is not of this earth. The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 13 that there are tongues of angels.

Whichever it is, it will be a foreign language that we will not be able to speak out on our own, and only His Holy Spirit’s supernatural transmission of this language out of our spirits will give us the ability to be able to speak it using our voice.

Whatever tongue Holy Spirit gives us, we will be able to use it all the time, whenever we want. It will be our own personal, private, prayer language between us and the Lord.

One thing to remember with this gift is that for the most part, we may never know or understand what we are praying about when we operate in this gift, however we can pray to interpret what the Lord has spoken through us.

The Bible tells us that we will be speaking out “mysteries,” and only the Father and His Holy Spirit will know exactly what the prayer is about on any given occasion.“Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.” (Romans 8:26)

Here we are told clearly that they were ALL filled and spoke in other tongues… which was the physical evidence of His Spirit in them, there were no exceptions and so we can expect the same today, and includes all the other gifts of His Spirit as in 

The Word of Knowledge
The Word of Wisdom
The Gift of Prophecy
The Gift of Faith
The Gifts of Healings
The Working of Miracles
The Discerning of Spirits
Different Kinds of Tongues
The Interpretation of Tongues

our Father has not changed..

He is the same yesterday today and forever. Heb.13:8

In Him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.  (Ephesians 1:13-14) Here we see the sealing by His Spirit to enable us to continue our walk. 

It is interesting that the Father waited 50 days after Messiahs’ resurrection, (10 days after His Ascension) before He sent His Holy Spirit.  As our Father is precise in all His details it is without doubt because He was waiting for the Appointed Time/Shavuot/Pentecost.  He is never early and He is never late in fulfilling His promises.

The other symbol of His Spirit and presence is FIRE.

From the Ex.3:2 burning bush, to the pillar in the wilderness, to the outpouring in Jerusalem

our God is a consuming FIRE Heb.12:29

and as Malachi states like a refiners fire.

In Malachi 3:1-4, the prophet declares the

imminent return of the Lord

and with it,

His holy judgment of refining fire.

 We are all too well aware that being a follower of Messiah does not spare us from experiencing testings, trials, conflict and trouble; and the process of refinement is one that He continually applies to our lives.

This fire is Holy Fire – Esh Kadosh/qadosh. אש קדושה

The Fire that cleanses, refines and purifies; it burns up all that is not acceptable to the Father and also speaks of His power so that like Jesus/Yeshua, we may work the works of Him who sends us. John 9:4, for greater works than these will you do. John 14:12.

BUT as always, there is a condition, an IF

We have to be willing..

we have to lay down our lives, our plans and allow Him to be sovereign in our lives.

The choice is ours…His offer is there for whosoever will… The events of Acts 2 includes the

empowering

of His spirit

and the imparting of His boldness to proclaim the good news of Messiah’s Kingdom. The boldness of the fire like Jeremiah* had.

Are we truly on fire for God? .. or

are we just barely glowing embers, dying without the breath of His Spirit … we need the mighty rushing wind of Shavuot to blow on and re-ignite the fire.

More on Bones of fire link below..*

https://www.minimannamoments.com/bones-of-fire-and-graffiti/

Holy Spirit of Truth is certainly God, however, He is not the Person of Yeshua/HaMashiach/Jesus Christ.  The scriptures seem to indicate that it was the Father who sent the Holy Spirit – “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.”  (John 14:16-17 And then Messiah says – “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”  (John 14:18)

The early spring Appointed Times/Moedim: (Pesach/Passover, Chag haMatzot /Unleavened Bread, Bikkurim/Firstfruits); were fulfilled in order, all in the same year, through the death, burial, and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ/Yeshua HaMashiach.  When we look at the harvest times, Yeshua/Jesus and the many saints that were resurrected with Him, were the barley harvest.  Notably, the ripeness of the barley is what decides if a new year can begin, or if a leap month, called Adar2, needs to be added to the calendar.  This is always taken into account when the date of the late spring feast – Pentecost/Shavuot is calculated.

Pentecost/Shavuot experienced at least a partial fulfillment in the same year the three spring feasts were fulfilled.  As we already noted, 50 days after Firstfruits/Bikkurim, or 10 days after Yeshua/Jesus’ ascension, His Holy Spirit/Ruach HaKodesh, descended upon the Jewish believers waiting in Jerusalem. Partial fulfillment in that He has been indwelling and sealing believers ever since, until the day of their redemption –

as He said, we are to

look up for your redemption draweth nigh,

so it is not yet completed!

And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh. Luke 21:28

Since Holy Spirit is God, He is omnipresent, everywhere at the same time. 

Pentecost/Shavuot marks the time of the wheat harvest in Israel.

As we have walked through the spring Appointed Times/Moedim, we can see a picture of our own walk with Messiah.

At Pesach/Pasover we are reminded of being set free from the bondage of sin and death, then during the Feast of Unleavened Bread/Matzah week, we have the opportunity to practice our unleavenedness; and rejoice in our saviors Resurrection as Firstfruits from the dead. Then as we count from the Omer we are like the wheat crops growing towards maturity, ultimately designed to become an abundant harvest for Him.

During this season of counting we can focus on certain spiritual themes such as: sowing, growing, increase, being fed and nourished by the Father and being mindful of how we are growing toward maturity in Messiah. By examining our ways we discover if they are truly aligned, submitted and conformed to His.

This is why we are to WAIT on the Lord, for His power to fill us and enable us to be witnesses unto Him; this is how He goes with us, and will always be with us, and will never leave us nor forsake us.

Isaiah 30:18: “And therefore will the Lord wait, that he may be gracious unto you, and therefore will he be exalted that he might be merciful upon you: for the Lord is a God of judgment, blessed are all that WAIT for him.”

Like the farmer who waits for the precious fruit of the earth, we too have to wait for God to mature us and grow us. Part of our being mature in Messiah, is knowing when to put our hand to the plough and work hard but also knowing that when we have done all we can do then it is time to WAIT/CHAKAH. We must ask ourselves if we have been listening/hearing to His call and responding by doing that which He has required of us?..We must walk and work in maturity and continue to be patient, stabilize our hearts because the coming of the Master draws near. James 5:7-8

Let’s be mindful of the season we are in…..

on each of us..

For those new to the site previous posts linked below cover more detail on Shavuot/Pentecost..

https://www.minimannamoments.com/2-x-3000-a-marriage-made-in-heaven/ 

https://www.minimannamoments.com/shavuot-2-x-3000-a-marriage-made-in-heaven-conclusion/

https://www.minimannamoments.com/the-look-of-shavuot/

Shavuot 2022 begins Saturday, June 4 at sunset and ends Monday, June 6 at nightfall.

Shalom aleikhem

chaverim/friends and mishpachah/family!

Shavua Tov, Have a blessed week,

you are greatly loved and prayed for daily.

REMEMBER..

Please don’t leave here without assurance of your salvation

Not sure ..you can be…

Make certain Messiah Jesus/Yeshua is your Redeemer,

Savior, Lord, and soon returning King

and that you have a personal relationship with Him.

It’s all about Life and Relationship, NOT Religion.

You are very precious in His sight.

SIMPLY SAY THE FOLLOWING MEANING IT FROM YOUR HEART..don’t delay one more minute, SAY IT RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name.

Rosh Hashanah

Some information regarding Rosh Hashanah greeting

רֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה 

Rosh Hashana

The Jewish New Year

for Hebrew Year 5782

Rosh Hashanah

Hebrew: ראש השנה,

literally “head of the year”,

is the Jewish Civil New Year. It is also in remembrance of Breresheet/Genesis and the day of earths re-creation, or New birth, which can be likened to our new birth in Messiah Yeshua/Jesus.

It is the first of the High Holidays or

Yamim Noraim

(“Days of Awe”),

celebrated ten days before Yom Kippur.

Rosh Hashanah is observed on the first two days of Tishrei, the seventh month of the Hebrew calendar. It is described in the Torah as יום תרועה (Yom Teru’ah, a day of sounding [the Shofar]).

The New Moon Day of the seventh month is called

‘Yom Teruah’ (יוֹם תְּרוּעָה).

This is oftentimes translated as the

‘Day of Trumpets’,

although it actually translates more like the

‘Day of Blowing,’

or the ‘Day of Shouting.’

Yom Teruah literally means the Day of the Shofar Sound.

It is also called The Feast of Trumpets.

It occurs six cycles of the new moon (i.e. six months) after Pesach on the first day of the seventh month in the Biblical calendar.

It marks the end of a long, hot, and dry summer and the beginning of the fall festivals.

Most importantly Yom Teruah is a day of

shouting and alarm

to remind men that Yom Kippurim is near.

“There are only 10 days left”

for the wicked to repent of their wickedness

and join themselves to True Israel.

Each month throughout the year the reminder,

the warning cry, has been blown;

the seventh month is coming

and soon

it will be too late to repent.

Teshuvah.

Some greetings are:

 “Brachot l’shana tova ve…”

“ברכות לשנה טובה ו….”

“Greetings for a good and…year”.

“Have a happy and sweet new year” 

is Shanah tovah u’metuka.

 לשנה טובה תכתב.   l-shanah tovah tikatev

May you be written and inscribed for a good year!

Generally, “shana tovah” 

or “l’shava tova tikatev”

or “shana m’tuka”

and not the whole greeting and blessing.

There are four forms.

The correct greeting for Rosh Hashanah is

“L’shanah tovah”,

which translates to 

“for a good year”.

 People may also use a longer phrase, “Shanah Tovah um’tukah”,

Hebrew for “may you have a good and sweet new year.” 

Both form parts of the traditional full greeting of

“L’shanah tovah tikatev v’taihatem”

 L’Shanah Tovah Tikatevu: The literal Hebrew to English translation is

“May you be inscribed (in the Book of Life) for a good year.”

This traditional Rosh HaShanah greeting

wishes others a good year and is often shorted to

“Shanah Tovah” (Good Year) or “L’Shanah Tovah.”

לְשָׁנָה טוֹבָה. [To a] good year. [leʃaˈna toˈva] Hebrew.

Used as a greeting during Rosh Hashanah and the Days of Awe.

Also used, simply

” shanah tovah ” (שָׁנָה טוֹבָה),

meaning “a good year”,

or

” shanah tovah u’metukah ” (שָׁנָה טוֹבָה וּמְתוּקָה)

meaning “a good and sweet year”.

A more formal greeting commonly used among religiously observant Jews is

Ketivah VaChatimah Tovah

(Hebrew: כְּתִיבָה וַחֲתִימָה טוֹבָה‎), which translates as

“A good inscription and sealing [in the Book of Life]”,

or

L’shanah tovah tikatevu v’tichatemu meaning

“May you be inscribed and sealed for a good year”.

Shanah Tovah means good year, with no context. 

In L’Shanah Tovah, the “L” is a Hebrew preposition

that corresponds in this case to the English preposition “for”,

and the context is the greeting

“May you be inscribed for a good year!”

טובה שאנה

 

Jerusalem from above.

The Golden Gate through which Messiah is believed to enter

Jerusalem.

Many believe that He may return around the day of blowing of trumpets, or that the catching away of the ecclesia will occur at this season; however Yeshua/Jesus said Himself  

Matthew 24:36 But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, but My Father only.

Yes we can see the day approaching and must be ready but we must remember He will come at an hour that we do not expect Him!

Luke 12:40 Be you therefore ready also: for the Son of man comes at an hour when you think not.

Luke 21:34-36. And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares…. Matthew 24:42,44

This picture

and

the intriguing headline is worth a look:

The following video below was of interest to accompany the curious phenomena!

 

Link below to the post from last year as the content is always pertinent, simply change the date from 5781

to the new Hebrew Year 5782

https://www.minimannamoments.com/yamim-noraim-days-of-awe-or-high-holy-days/

https://www.minimannamoments.com/are-we-boxed-in/

further links for the Fall Appointed Times

are to be found on Home Page under heading

7 FESTIVALS/APPOINTED TIMES/FEASTS

May His true Shalom rest upon each one in Yeshuas’ Name.

You are greatly loved Mishpachah, Family,

משפחה

and prayed for daily..

 make sure you are secure in the knowledge you are saved

NOT SURE? YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name. Amen.

Where Was Keifa The Week Of Chag haMatzot?

We have just completed the week of

Chag ha Matzot/

Unleavened Bread/ חג המצות

which began with

Passover/Pesach/פסח.

Exodus 12:13

Passing over into new year and

commemorating the Hebrews’ liberation

from slavery in Egypt and the

passing over

of the forces of destruction,

or the sparing of the firstborn of the Israelites,

when the Lord “smote the land of Egypt”

on the eve of the Exodus.

People wish each other a

kosher and joyous Passover. 

In Hebrew it is:

chag Pesach kasher vesame’ach 

pronounced:

CHAG PEH-sach kah-SHER ve-sah-MAY-ach.

This is the beginning of the spiritual new year/

the cycle of

Appointed Times of the Lord

His Moedim

moe-eh-DEEM

מועדים

Firstfruits (ום בכורים),

also called

Reishit Katzir.

Now we are headed into

seven weeks/49days of

counting the Omer

before

Shavuot/Pentecost/שָׁבוּעוֹת

Counting of the Omer (ספירת העומר)

Pentecost (Koinē Greek: Πεντηκοστή)

Also known as the

Feast of Weeks or Shavuot – שָׁבוּעוֹת

This is a time of preparation to be ready to receive the impartation of His Spirit of Holiness/Ruach HaKodesh.

Following His מועדים / Moedim/

Appointed Times /feasts, helps us to stay close to the understanding of their meaning and of how Yeshua/Jesus fulfilled them and also how it affects us in our individual lives.

Traditional Christianity focuses more on Palm Sunday and Resurrection Sunday. Not that there is anything wrong with this, however, there is so much more that we have missed because of a lack of teaching and the lack of understanding of what the Scriptures are really saying to us. (See links at end for more.)

2 Corinthians 3:16 – 18 tells us this.

Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is freedom.

16 But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17 Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. 18 And we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate[ a] the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.

Now that we are in Messiah, we have complete and total freedom because the veil is removed.

This is not the freedom to simply do whatever we please; it is freedom from the penalty of sin, which is death.

Romans 6:23

For the wages of sin is death,

but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In Messiah we are free to live in the ways of

life /chaim which are:

holiness kedushah קדושה

purity ṭaharah טָהֳרָה

and truth emet אֱמֶת

.

We are free to be alive in Him because

sin and death no longer bind us.

This scripture also says that,

we are in the process of being transformed

into the same image,

the image of the glory of the Lord.

The process of going from glory to glory is increased every year as we follow the cycle of His Appointed Times.

They are there for us to take the opportunity to annually examine ourselves and to recommit ourselves and allowing Him to bring us higher, into maturity of His spirit by understanding the truth of the abundant life He has provided.

The significance of His Appointed Times becomes clear in the life of Messiah and its purpose is for our growth in the Lord.

 During the days of

Unleavened Bread/ Chag ha Matzot,

the book of Acts 12:3-11

recorded a miraculous incidence

involving Peter/Keifa/Kefa/קיף.

In Hebrew Peter’s name is kef, קיף

spelled kaf-feh meaning rock.

The Jewish tradition regarding Shimon Keifa (his name in Hebrew/Aramaic) can be found in various Medieval sources.

According to these sources his name was Shimon Keifa, which means Shimon the Rock because he was a type of Nazarite (nazir, in Hebrew) who sat for many years on the same rock, praying and learning Torah.

Peter/Keifa was thrown into prison by Herod who thought he could gain a political advantage by persecuting Jewish believers in Yeshua/Jesus.

3 And because he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded further to seize Peter also.

Now it was during the Days of Unleavened Bread.

4  And when he had apprehended him,

he put him in prison, and delivered him to

four quaternions/squads of soldiers to keep him;

intending after Passoveer/Pesach

to bring him forth to the people.

He secured Peter/Keifa in the prison under heavy guard until the time of his sentencing.

Not only was the prison door being watched by guards but his hands were bound with chains as he slept with a soldier on either side of him. His fate seemed certain for there was no obvious escape from this prison.

However Herod had not counted on the fact that there was one who would have no trouble getting inside the prison.

This scripture tells us that was a sudden burst of light

and a messenger/angel/ appeared before Peter

and within seconds the chains fell off his hands.

The soldiers were still asleep and although Peter was still in prison he was no longer chained up, his reality has changed.

But as long as he stayed where he was, he was a free man but still inside the prison.

The only thing holding him back was himself. He needed to get up and go.

For those of us in Messiah our reality has also changed, we have been set free and the chains of sin and death no longer bind us. Some of the change in our lives is up to us because even though He can make the chains fall off from our hands; and even though He can make gates to open before us of their own accord; if we do not rise in haste, gird ourselves, bind on our sandals and put our garments around us and follow Him, we can never be truly free.

Let us rise in haste and be following Him who entered the prison from which no man could escape, that we might be set free. He led us into our deliverance so that we can follow in the way of His salvation.

As disciples of Messiah our identity is also reflected in what was the defining moment for Israel remembered at Passover/Pesach. They left Egypt/Mitzrayim /מצרים and so have we Egypt/Mitzrayim /מצרים is our past.

The Exodus: Hebrew:

יציאת מצרים, Yeẓi’at Miẓrayim

literally: ‘Departure from Egypt’

As the children of Israel saw the way through the sea open up before them leading to their salvation; we trust that He will make a way where there seems to be no way in our own lives.

We need to make that step of faith into the sea to see our Savior; and not be tempted to return to Egypt…

We have a choice…

Galatians 5:1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

and Messiah has made us free.

Exodus 14:13 fear not and still yourselves and see the salvation of the Lord which he does for you today

for as you have seen the Egyptians/Mitzrayim today you will never see them again.

If we will go forward, this is true for us too.

This last week has reminded us all that Messiah accomplished…

Let us rejoice in the freedom then

with which Messiah has made us free and

stand fast.

Galatians 5:11 Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. 

Having done all, to stand Ephesians 6:13

and

Luke 19:13

We were not brought to the edge of the sea to be drowned, or to be dragged away in chains like Peter/קיף/ Keifa.

We are to get up as he did,

and to go forward

out of the prison.

He has delivered us.

In Messiah, our reality has changed.

 

Let’s not yearn for the things of Egypt/ Mitzrayim that had us bound, but leaving behind the former things, forgetting the past and pressing on towards the future and stay under the Blood of Messiah.

Philippians 3:13-14 Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet; but one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

Let’s not ponder on things of the past.

This is the spiritual new year

and as we begin

the new cycle of life/chaim/חים;

Chai חי

is a Hebrew word and symbol that means

life, alive, or living.

It is spelled with the Hebrew letters

Chet ח and Yud י.

Adding the letter m/Mem/ם

gives the plural chaim

let’s press forward to the prize of the high calling …

looking unto Jesus/Yeshua the author and finisher of our faith. Hebrews 12:2

Why??

Because..

Links below for more posts on:

First Fruits, Seder Meal, Afikomen & Omer…

https://www.minimannamoments.com/revealing-the-overcoming-resheet-of-bikkurim/

https://www.minimannamoments.com/afikomen-mysterious-and-hidden/

https://www.minimannamoments.com/first-fruits/

https://www.minimannamoments.com/13-for-supper-and-only-4-cups/

https://www.minimannamoments.com/counting-our-blessings-with-omer/

His true שָׁלוֹם / Shalom / Peace

rest upon each one in Jesus/Yeshuas’ Name.

The ancient Hebrew meaning of shalam was

to make something whole”!

‘Mishpachah’ ‘Family’

משפחה 

Mish-pa-KHa

you are greatly loved and prayed for daily..

May Yeshua make you whole!

This season make sure you are secure

in the knowledge you are saved

NOT SURE? YOU CAN BE..

SAY THE FOLLOWING FROM YOUR HEART RIGHT NOW…

Heavenly Father I come to you in the Name of Jesus/Yeshua asking for forgiveness of my sins for which I am truly sorry. I repent of them all and turn away from my past.

I believe with my heart and confess with my mouth that Jesus/Yeshua is your Son and that He died on the cross at calvary to pay the price for my sin, so that I might be forgiven and have eternal life in the kingdom of Heaven. Father I believe that Jesus/Yeshua rose from the dead and I ask you to come into my life right now and be my personal Savior and Lord and I will worship you all the days of my life. Because your word is truth I say that I am now forgiven and born again and by faith I am washed clean with the blood of Jesus/Yeshua. Thank you that you have accepted me into your family in Jesus’/Yeshua’s name. Amen.