THE FEAST OF JESUS

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“The Lord said to Moses, "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'These are my appointed feasts, the appointed feasts of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.

Sabbath
" 'There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the Lord. "

'These are the Lord's appointed feasts, the sacred assemblies you are to proclaim at their appointed times:

Passover
The Lord's Passover begins at twilight on the fourteenth day of the first month. On the fifteenth day of that month the Lord's Feast of Unleavened Bread begins; for seven days you must eat bread made without yeast. On the first day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work. For seven days present an offering made to the Lord by fire. And on the seventh day hold a sacred assembly and do no regular work.' "

First Fruits
The Lord said to Moses, "Speak to the Israelites and say to them: 'When you enter the land I am going to give you and you reap its harvest, bring to the priest a sheaf of the first grain you harvest. He is to wave the sheaf before the Lord so it will be accepted on your behalf; the priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath. On the day you wave the sheaf, you must sacrifice as a burnt offering to the Lord a lamb a year old without defect, together with its grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil—an offering made to the Lord by fire, a pleasing aroma—and its drink offering of a quarter of a hin of wine. You must not eat any bread, or roasted or new grain, until the very day you bring this offering to your God. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live.

Feast of Weeks
" 'From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the Lord. From wherever you live, bring two loaves made of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour, baked with yeast, as a wave offering of firstfruits to the Lord. Present with this bread seven male lambs, each a year old and without defect, one young bull and two rams. They will be a burnt offering to the Lord, together with their grain offerings and drink offerings—an offering made by fire, an aroma pleasing to the Lord. Then sacrifice one male goat for a sin offering and two lambs, each a year old, for a fellowship offering. The priest is to wave the two lambs before the Lord as a wave offering, together with the bread of the firstfruits. They are a sacred offering to the Lord for the priest. On that same day you are to proclaim a sacred assembly and do no regular work. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live. " 'When you reap the harvest of your land, do not reap to the very edges of your field or gather the gleanings of your harvest. Leave them for the poor and the alien. I am the Lord your God.' "

Feast of Trumpets
The Lord said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites: 'On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts. Do no regular work, but present an offering made to the Lord by fire.' "

Day of Atonement
The Lord said to Moses, "The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present an offering made to the Lord by fire. Do no work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the Lord your God. Anyone who does not deny himself on that day must be cut off from his people. I will destroy from among his people anyone who does any work on that day. You shall do no work at all. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live. It is a sabbath of rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your sabbath."

Feast of the Tabernacles
The Lord said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites: 'On the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Lord's Feast of Tabernacles begins, and it lasts for seven days. The first day is a sacred assembly; do no regular work. For seven days present offerings made to the Lord by fire, and on the eighth day hold a sacred assembly and present an offering made to the Lord by fire. It is the closing assembly; do no regular work. (" 'These are the Lord's appointed feasts, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies for bringing offerings made to the Lord by fire—the burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings required for each day. These offerings are in addition to those for the Lord's Sabbaths and in addition to your gifts and whatever you have vowed and all the freewill offerings you give to the Lord.) " 'So beginning with the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the crops of the land, celebrate the festival to the Lord for seven days; the first day is a day of rest, and the eighth day also is a day of rest. On the first day you are to take choice fruit from the trees, and palm fronds, leafy branches and poplars, and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. Celebrate this as a festival to the Lord for seven days each year. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come; celebrate it in the seventh month. Live in booths for seven days: All native-born Israelites are to live in booths so your descendants will know that I had the Israelites live in booths when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.' "

So Moses announced to the Israelites the appointed feasts of the Lord." Leviticus 23

In addition to daily standard tabernacle worship practices, the Lord also designated “appointed feasts of the Lord” which were to be treated by the Israelites as “sacred assemblies.” Chapter 23 documents the appointed feasts that Israel was to observe.

All these sacred assemblies listed have been covered in the scriptures before this point in Leviticus. Specifically, the Sabbath was discussed in length throughout Exodus and was highlighted in God’s Ten Commandments. The Passover observance was first ordered as the Lord delivered Israel from the oppressive hands of Pharoah in Exodus 12. The dedication of first fruits as well as the Feast of Weeks and Feast of Tabernacles, were introduced in Exodus, Chapters 23 and 34. The Day of Atonement had been discussed in earlier in Leviticus 16.

So all and all, Leviticus 23 is a summation of sacred assemblies that the Lord expected Israel to recognize, each with their own significant meaning and requirements. The only new one is the Feast of Trumpets which was a one day celebration which involved special sacrifices. It occurred on every new moon (or in other words the first day of each month…remember they used the lunar calendar in biblical days) and was marked by the priests blowing trumpets to mark the occasion thus the feast’s title.

As we look at our lives in Christ today, we can see where things have changed from the Old Testament days. No longer do we need to observe special feasts that fell under the Old Testament covenant because in Christ Jesus, God made a new covenant with His creation and it was one for all people, Jew and Gentile. God took the blood of His Son…the sacrificial Lamb of God…and spread it around the doorpost of every heart that believed and trusted in Jesus so that we might be passed over from death into eternal life. Jesus gave His disciples and, in turn, all of us, a new feast…one that would be the only one required until the day He returns…one with the simple elements representing His body and blood…one that would proclaim Him until He comes again…and He is going to return. Here’s is the feast that Jesus gave us…the one that all believers are to prescribe to today (and of note, He gave this feast to us on the Passover day):

“On the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, "Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover?" He replied, "Go into the city to a certain man and tell him, 'The Teacher says: My appointed time is near. I am going to celebrate the Passover with my disciples at your house.' " So the disciples did as Jesus had directed them and prepared the Passover. When evening came, Jesus was reclining at the table with the Twelve…While they were eating, Jesus took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to his disciples, saying, "Take and eat; this is my body." Then he took the cup, gave thanks and offered it to them, saying, "Drink from it, all of you. This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. I tell you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in my Father's kingdom." Matthew 26:17-20, 27-29

Through His broken body and shed blood, Jesus paid the price for our sins. His sacrifice was the last one required to atone for all the sins of mankind. No more animals need be slain, no more animal blood spread on an altar, no more burning of animal flesh or grain. No…only the sacrifice of Jesus at Calvary was needed for all those who believe and trust in Him to find eternal life…and eternal hope, both now and forever. As we partake of communion, we are to remember the great sacrifice that Jesus Christ made for us but I can’t help but think we’re falling short if we only acknowledge Him on formal communion moments. Let all of us commit to always remembering first and foremost the sacrifice Jesus made…dying so we might live…rising so we might have the opportunity to follow Him to the Father someday. All praise to God, our Father for the gift of His Son, Jesus. May we never cease to celebrate Him. Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

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