In Part 1, we caught a glimpse that encourages one to seek the Scriptures regarding the Appointed Times. Here, believers can glean important points on how our Father has instructed us through His Word on how to honor the Appointed Times. There is no doubt that scripture is clear: we are to keep his Appointed Times forever. If you have not come to this realization yet, I implore you again to search the Scriptures diligently and seek the truth from our Father through fear and trembling in prayer before Him. True believers will constantly be seeking the Father this way and striving to be obedient loving children in all He instructs.
Then on the fourteenth day of the first month shall be Yahuah's Passover.
Numbers 28:16
First thing we notice is that our Father's calendar differs from the calendar most use today. That is a very important truth that I highly encourage all believers to work to understand. Of course, that's a subject for another time. This year, the fourteenth day of the first biblical month falls on March 30th, 2018 at sunset.
At creation, Yahuah established days quite differently than we recognize them today. According to Scripture, a day is sunset to sunset, instead of 12:00AM to 12:00AM. Just as our creation was established, a day moves from darkness to light to darkness then to light. In the case of Passover 2018, the fourteenth day of the Biblical month of Abib (or Aviv) begins at sunset March 30th.
We agree, this can be quite confusing for those new to this understanding. We will provide resources in the future to better understand Yahuah's Calendar and days according to His creation. For now, we encourage you to begin with Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits as you move closer to Yahuah and His perfect unchanging truth.
Passover
It is significant to note that there are elements of Passover that cannot be kept according to the instructions given by the Father. This in no way shape or form should encourage one to abandon the Appointed Time, as Yahuah instructs us to remember it forever. Remember, Passover has everything to do with our Messiah. We should be keeping it in remembrance of him and what he, the Father, and the Holy Spirit did and do for us. That is the major reason believers today commemorate this Appointed Time as they are instructed to forever. Do not let the adversary keep you from honoring our Messiah and Father by keeping you from commemorating Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits. Push forward and live your life according to Scripture without worrying about the judgement of others. Give honor to the Father and Son where they rightfully deserve—for the grace—the favor—that they have shown us is immeasurable. One is not obedient to earn such favor, but because they have graciously shown us such favor. We keep the Appointed Times because we love them.
Here are some of the instructions we cannot rightly keep today:
The Passover meal should be prepared and eaten in the Land Yahuah put His name: Jerusalem. The sacrifice of the Passover Lamb must be administered by Leviticus Priests at the Temple in Jerusalem. Because the Temple does not stand, and the Levitical Priesthood is not established, our Holy Scriptures instruct believers that if we desire to be obedient to the Father, we must refrain from the sacrificial portions of the Appointed Times. By not violating the requirements to properly have our sacrifices administered for us by Levitical Priests in the designated place, we are actually being loving and obedient children. Again, this does not mean that we should abstain from honoring this Appointed Time. There are many of the other instructions we can keep and honor in order to remember this vital time.
Scripture is clear in how all Appointed Times should be honored. Again, please take the time to search the Word yourself. That is Yahuah's desire, that you seek Him yourselves. Numbers 28, Exodus 12-13, and Leviticus 23 are are excellent places to start. Read your Bibles.
Here are some bullets on what Scripture illustrates:
Abib shall be for you the beginning of months (1st month of the year)
On the 10th day of the month, every man set aside a lamb for their household
A lamb without blemish
A male a year old
Taken from the sheep or the goats
Keep it until the fourteenth day of this month
The whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight
They shall take some of the blood from it and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses of which they eat it
They shall eat the lamb that night
It must be roasted on the fire
Do not eat any of it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts.
With unleavened bread and bitter herbs it shall be eaten
None of it shall remain until the morning; anything that remains until morning you shall burn
In this manner you shall eat of it:
With your belt fastened
Your sandals on your feet
Your staff in your hand
You shall eat it in haste
No foreigner is to eat of the Passover Lamb
But every man's servant, after they have been circumcised, then he may eat of it.
A sojourner or hired servant shall not eat of it
It is to be eaten in a single house; you are not to bring forth any of the flesh outside the house, nor break any bone of it.
All the congregation of Israel are to celebrate this.
If a stranger sojourns with you, and celebrates the Passover to Yahuah, let all his males be circumcised, and then allow him to come near to celebrate it; and he shall be like a native of the land.
The same law shall apply to the native as the stranger who sojourns among you.
It is Yahuah's (the LORD's) Passover. For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night, and will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgments—I am Yahuah.
The blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you live; and when I see the blood I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt.
Now this day will be a memorial to you, and you shall celebrate it as a feast to Yahuah; throughout your generations you are to celebrate it as a permanent ordinance.
Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, but on the first day you shall remove leaven from your houses; for whoever eats anything leavened from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel.
Exodus 12:11-15
As you may see, Passover is not really a day, but a meal. The Passover meal is eaten just before the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Which takes us into our next segment.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread
Again, one must honor these specific Appointed Times by refraining from administering their own sacrifices. Scripture established that sacrifices must be administered by the Levitical Priesthood at the Temple. Anything that strays from this is in violation of our Father's instructions. The sacrifices outlined in Unleavened Bread are not to be offered because we lack an established Levitical Priesthood and earthly Temple/Tabernacle. But we are still called to memorialize these Appointed Times and can do so according to Scripture.
Here are some bullets about Unleavened Bread:
Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread
On the first day, remove the leaven out of your homes, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel
On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly
On the seventh day a holy assembly
No work shall be done on these days (They are High Days and are treated like Shabbat)
But what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you
You shall also observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt; therefore you shall observe this day throughout your generations as a permanent ordinance.
Exodus 12:17
I'll repeat this again and again, we are to keep all the Appointed Times forever, throughout our generations. True believers are grafted-in Israelites. To be considered native born Israelites.
[Passover] is a night to be observed for Yahuah for having brought them out from the land of Egypt; this night is for Yahuah, to be observed by all the sons of Israel throughout their generations.
Exodus 12:42
First Fruits
And Yahuah spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, when you come into the land that I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest, and he shall wave the sheaf before Yahuah, so that you may be accepted. On the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. And on the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a male lamb a year old without blemish as a burnt offering to Yahuah. And the grain offering with it shall be two tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, a food offering to Yahuah with a pleasing aroma, and the drink offering with it shall be of wine, a fourth of a hin. And you shall eat neither bread nor grain parched or fresh until this same day, until you have brought the offering of your God: it is a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings.
Leviticus 23:9-14
As you can discern, there are portions of First Fruits that cannot be honored at this time if we desire to be obedient children. However, if one is a believer in Messiah and holds strong to the promises of our Father, they should be compelled to commemorate this Appointed Time. We are told it is a statute forever to be kept throughout our generations in all our dwellings. Furthermore, if we hold true to Scripture, one should recognize that Yahusha our Messiah was our First Fruits offering waved before Yahuah.
Yahusha is our First Fruits offering!
But now Messiah (Christ) has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Messiah all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Messiah the first fruits, after that those who are Messiah's at His coming...
1 Corinthians 15:20-23
There is so much we can all learn about the promises and Appointed Times of our Father. This post is a mere glimpse into these amazing times. We encourage all who stake claim as believers, those desiring to be children of Yahuah, to set-apart the time to learn about these important Mo'edim laid out in Scripture. Yahuah's appointed times are very important to Him, and they all point to our Messiah.
We pray you utilize these times in fellowship with Yahuah, family, and fellow believers. Use them to grow in the knowledge and truth as well as giving praise for the grace we are blessed to enjoy through our Messiah.
No pressure. Remember, we are all children before the Father. First beginning with milk, then moving on to solid food. We all have a lot to learn regarding the Holy Scriptures and it is such a blessing that our Father guides us through His Holy Spirit, His Word, and lights the path of His perfect Son. Yahusha's perfect example is a blessing beyond measure. Yahuah's promises fulfilled in Yahusha are the proof of His immeasurable love for those who desire to be His children.
He knows we are all learning and have a lot to learn and grow. But He promised to finish the work He started. And just like every earthly father, He is pleased to see His children starting and striving to take their first steps and walk. Let us all cling to the robe of our Messiah as we take our first steps...
Stay tuned as our next post will share some examples of how some believers today choose to keep these Appointed Times.
Sean is a former Atheist who was finally awoken to the reality of our Creator—which lead him to the one place he thought he would never step foot: “Bible College.” During his studies, our Heavenly Father flipped his Christian worldview upside down in order to reveal the Whole truth of His perfect Word. As a follower of Messiah Yahusha (Christ Jesus), Sean encourages believers to deepen their faith, seek the truth, test everything, and be willing to walk in the true image they were created: the image of the Most High and His flawless son.