Christ & the Prophetic Feasts
In the last post, I briefly outlined the 7 feasts God commanded us to follow in Leviticus. Now, I want to take those feasts and compare them to an outline of Christ life.
Sukkot - Christ was born during Sukkot
While mainstream culture would have us believe that Christ was born on a cold, wintry night at the end of December, the truth is that he was most likely born during the Festival of the Booths also known as Sukkot. There are a couple of indications in the scripture pointing us to this conclusion, many which require math & looking at Jewish calendars, which hurts my head. But you can derive that looking at the account of John the Baptist, who was born around the same time. John's father ,Zacharias, served during the tenth week and Elizabeth conceived shortly thereafter. Thus, we can place the date of Yeshua' birth during the festival of Sukkot.. Circumstantially, shepherds would not be out at night in the dead of winter. And if you look at the other festivals & Christ' involvement, then you can count back to find Him born during Sukkot.
Another interesting note is that Zechariah 14:16-19 indicates there is one festival that will be celebrated by all the nations at which God commanded the people to be joyful. In Luke 2:10, the angel says that he is bringing good tidings of great joy. So it begs the question, "Is Christ birth celebrated by all the nations?"
Passover - Christ fulfilled passover on Passover
This is by far the easiest Jewish feast for the Christian to follow because of the prevalence of sacrifice & forgiveness. In the account of Exodus, God sent His spirit to passover & kill the firstborn all the inhabitants of Pharaoh's land, including the Israelite slaves. However, if they were to smear the blood of the lamb on the door posts the night of the passover, then their firstborn would be spared.
In the same way, Christ became our passover lamb. His sacrifice spared our lives. And ironically, Christ fulfilled passover on Passover. The night he was crucified was incidentally the same time of the Jewish feast of Passover. Paul outlines this in both 1 Corinthians 5:7 & 1 Peter 1:18-19. It was also prophesied in Isaiah 53:7-9.
Feast of Unleavened Bread - Christ was buried on the Feast of Unleavened Bread
The day after the first day of Passover was the start of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, a time in which the Jews would go through their homes and rid themselves of any leavened products. For them yeast was symbolic of the sins in their lives.
If Christ died on Passover, then he was buried during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
According to John 19:30, he died on a Sabbath which is usually Friday through Saturday. However, John makes a point that it was a "High Holy Day", which was a term used for one of the 7 feasts. Furthermore, Matthew 12:40 says that he was in the grave 3 days & 3 nights, which doesn't work for a "died on Friday, rose on Sunday" situation. The first day after the passover lambs were killed marks the beginning of "The Feast of Unleavened Bread", which incidentally is a non-Saturday Sabbath.
Furthermore, the New Testament scriptures are peppered with references to Christ being the bread of life. While with the disciples during the first Communion, he broke bread with them saying, "This is my body broken for you".
First Fruits - Christ rose during the Feast of First Fruits
The day that followed the weekly Sabbath after Passover was a work day, which would commence the barley harvest or the first fruits of the harvest. If Christ died on the High Holy Sabbath mid-week, and rose 3 days & nights later, then His resurrection could fall on the Sunday following the weekly Sabbath or First Fruits. This sheds new light on Christ being called our First Fruits in 1 Corinthians 15:20-23.
Pentecost - Christ delivered the Holy Spirit on Pentecost
According to Leviticus, 50 days after the end of Passover marks the beginning of Pentecost. The disciples gathered in Acts 2 to celebrate Pentecost after Christ died. Incidentally, this is the same time that Christ showed up and poured out the Holy Spirit, marking the birth of the Church. Christ ascended saying that the Holy Spirit was coming. To the Jews, Pentecost was a commemoration of the deliverance of the Torah. For the Christian, it becomes so much more!
Festival of Trumpets - Christ' Return?
Priests would often call the field workers to the temple by blowing their version of trumpet, called a Shofar. This festival marks the beginning of a new year for the Jews. Ironically, Paul wrote in 1 Thess. 4:16 & 1 Cor. 15:51 - that Christ will come with trumpets.
Atonement - Christ Redeems the Saints
If Christ does intend to come during the Festival of Trumpets, then that can only mean that He will redeem us.
Whose to say these are not all coincidence. They could be. But, the Jewish authors were known for their symbolism which seems to be prevalent in the life of Christ.
Sukkot - Christ was born during Sukkot
While mainstream culture would have us believe that Christ was born on a cold, wintry night at the end of December, the truth is that he was most likely born during the Festival of the Booths also known as Sukkot. There are a couple of indications in the scripture pointing us to this conclusion, many which require math & looking at Jewish calendars, which hurts my head. But you can derive that looking at the account of John the Baptist, who was born around the same time. John's father ,Zacharias, served during the tenth week and Elizabeth conceived shortly thereafter. Thus, we can place the date of Yeshua' birth during the festival of Sukkot.. Circumstantially, shepherds would not be out at night in the dead of winter. And if you look at the other festivals & Christ' involvement, then you can count back to find Him born during Sukkot.
Another interesting note is that Zechariah 14:16-19 indicates there is one festival that will be celebrated by all the nations at which God commanded the people to be joyful. In Luke 2:10, the angel says that he is bringing good tidings of great joy. So it begs the question, "Is Christ birth celebrated by all the nations?"
Passover - Christ fulfilled passover on Passover
This is by far the easiest Jewish feast for the Christian to follow because of the prevalence of sacrifice & forgiveness. In the account of Exodus, God sent His spirit to passover & kill the firstborn all the inhabitants of Pharaoh's land, including the Israelite slaves. However, if they were to smear the blood of the lamb on the door posts the night of the passover, then their firstborn would be spared.
In the same way, Christ became our passover lamb. His sacrifice spared our lives. And ironically, Christ fulfilled passover on Passover. The night he was crucified was incidentally the same time of the Jewish feast of Passover. Paul outlines this in both 1 Corinthians 5:7 & 1 Peter 1:18-19. It was also prophesied in Isaiah 53:7-9.
Feast of Unleavened Bread - Christ was buried on the Feast of Unleavened Bread
The day after the first day of Passover was the start of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, a time in which the Jews would go through their homes and rid themselves of any leavened products. For them yeast was symbolic of the sins in their lives.
If Christ died on Passover, then he was buried during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
According to John 19:30, he died on a Sabbath which is usually Friday through Saturday. However, John makes a point that it was a "High Holy Day", which was a term used for one of the 7 feasts. Furthermore, Matthew 12:40 says that he was in the grave 3 days & 3 nights, which doesn't work for a "died on Friday, rose on Sunday" situation. The first day after the passover lambs were killed marks the beginning of "The Feast of Unleavened Bread", which incidentally is a non-Saturday Sabbath.
Furthermore, the New Testament scriptures are peppered with references to Christ being the bread of life. While with the disciples during the first Communion, he broke bread with them saying, "This is my body broken for you".
First Fruits - Christ rose during the Feast of First Fruits
The day that followed the weekly Sabbath after Passover was a work day, which would commence the barley harvest or the first fruits of the harvest. If Christ died on the High Holy Sabbath mid-week, and rose 3 days & nights later, then His resurrection could fall on the Sunday following the weekly Sabbath or First Fruits. This sheds new light on Christ being called our First Fruits in 1 Corinthians 15:20-23.
Pentecost - Christ delivered the Holy Spirit on Pentecost
According to Leviticus, 50 days after the end of Passover marks the beginning of Pentecost. The disciples gathered in Acts 2 to celebrate Pentecost after Christ died. Incidentally, this is the same time that Christ showed up and poured out the Holy Spirit, marking the birth of the Church. Christ ascended saying that the Holy Spirit was coming. To the Jews, Pentecost was a commemoration of the deliverance of the Torah. For the Christian, it becomes so much more!
Festival of Trumpets - Christ' Return?
Priests would often call the field workers to the temple by blowing their version of trumpet, called a Shofar. This festival marks the beginning of a new year for the Jews. Ironically, Paul wrote in 1 Thess. 4:16 & 1 Cor. 15:51 - that Christ will come with trumpets.
Atonement - Christ Redeems the Saints
If Christ does intend to come during the Festival of Trumpets, then that can only mean that He will redeem us.
Whose to say these are not all coincidence. They could be. But, the Jewish authors were known for their symbolism which seems to be prevalent in the life of Christ.
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