16 “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord your God in the place which He chooses: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Tabernacles; Deuteronomy 16:16
Last Thursday in November, perhaps my favorite day of the year, we celebrate Thanksgiving. It marks the official start of the holiday season and all the hustle and bustle of Christmas. Thanksgiving makes us pause for a moment and reflect on our lives and gives us a chance to recognize the blessings in our lives. As you gather today with family and participate in the feast, I want to draw your attention to three feasts in the Bible.
God gave Israel a unique holiday calendar to help them remember their past and to recall the goodness of God from generation to generation. As they remembered all God had done for them, it gave them a reason to rejoice and to teach their children about God. Today this calendar belongs to us Christians because it demonstrates what Jesus has done for us and what He will do for us. There are altogether seven feasts in the old testament, but today, I want to draw your attention to three feasts, The feast of unleavened bread, The Feast of Weeks, also known as Pentecost and The Feast of Tabernacle. During these three feasts, all males were required to appear before God in Jerusalem. Women and Children were also welcome, but it was mandatory for men. We see in the Gospel, Jesus fulfilled this requirement.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread: On the fourteenth day of the first month, Jews celebrate Passover, and the week following the Passover is the feast of unleavened bread. Passover is the day God not only freed them from the bondage of slavery but displayed His great power over the gods of Egypt. As you know, Jews were protected by the blood of a lamb on the doorpost. As Christians, we know Jesus the perfect lamb of God shed His blood, and by His blood, we are freed from the bondage of sins. This is the reason we don’t celebrate Passover because there is no reason to sacrifice anymore, but we do remember by partaking in communion. There is only one thing we are told to do in New testament, which is communion. At this time, I am going to ruffle some feathers and make some of you very upset, but it is essential to understand the communion. If you are not “BORN AGAIN” and you are partaking in communion as ritual, you are bringing judgment to yourself. As you eat the bread and drink the wine, you remember the price Jesus paid for your salvation. Now, knowing what Jesus has done, you continue to deny Him and not accept Him as savior, you are bringing condemnation to yourself. Let me put this way to help you understand, Israel celebrated Passover in remembrance of that night when God bought them out of Egypt. If you are still in bondage of sin, how can you celebrate communion, what exactly are you remembering? Israel wasn’t liberated from Egypt by cleaning their house and eating unleavened bread but by the power of God and the blood that was sprinkled on the doorpost. We are not saved by cleaning up our lives or by following a bunch of rituals but by trusting Jesus and by the power of His blood.
The Feast of Weeks ( Pentecost): Fifty days after the Passover, It was a joyful time of celebrating the wheat harvest. We Christians celebrate it as coming of the “Holy Spirit” and the birth of the Church. The feast of weeks ushered in the harvest season, and Jews were commanded to share cheerfully before the Lord and with widows, orphans, and poor amongst them. In the book of Acts, when the spirit came upon the believers at Pentecost, it was the beginning of the great harvest season for Church. Peter’s message added 3000, and the Holy Spirit is still adding people to Church. We can say, this is the feast where we participate in God’s work. I want to draw attention to verse. Deuteronomy 16:11, You shall rejoice before the Lord your God. Doesn’t this sound like a command? As you celebrate, maybe you are not in the best of the mood, perhaps you are in the middle of the storm, but God tells us to come rejoicing. Some times the feeling follows the action. If you go with mindset, I am not going to have fun, guess what, you probably are not going to have fun. Today, no matter what situation you are in, you shall rejoice. There is always something you can find to thank God for.
The feast of Tabernacle: This is celebrated in late September early October. During the feast, Jews live in booths or tents outside their homes to commemorate the time in the wilderness. This is the happiest and joyful feast. They acknowledge how God miraculously provided food and water in the desert. It is a celebration of provisions in our life. Today, too many preachers have corrupted the word of God and only talk to you about provisions: How God can give you all the things in your life. They don’t talk about being redeemed by the blood, nor do they say anything about the Holy Spirit. In these three feasts, we have our redemption ( Passover); the blood of Jesus saves us. On the day of Pentecost, coming together of Jews and gentile speaks of participation, and then you can tabernacle with Him: Provision; all three are yours in the person of Christ. You have to be pardoned ( Passover) to participate ( Pentecost) in divine works of God, and then you can enjoy all His promised provisions( Tabernacle). I ask you today, have you been pardoned? Are you redeemed by the blood of Jesus? If your answer is NO, I urge you to do so quickly. What better day to celebrate Passover than Thanksgiving?
Those of us who have accepted Christ, we have many reasons to thank God for His blessings. We have been pardoned ( Passover), we are empowered by the Holy Spirit ( Pentecost), and He provides all our needs ( Tabernacle). As you celebrate Thanksgiving with your loved once today, take a moment to remember how good He has been to you. Thank Him for your salvation, and don’t forget to use this time to tell your children, who is the source of all material provisions they enjoy. I like to wish you and your family Happy Thanksgiving from My family. God Bless.
only savior jesus 