Welcome to the Lansdale Life Church podcast. If you're seeking a closer relationship with Jesus Christ, this podcast is for you. Thank you for joining us today. Thank you for coming and be blessed and we're going to experience some a little bit of a course correction in the beginning of what we're going to do in Leviticus and see where we go with it and then we'll be on to talking about the the feasts in
23. So Lord we ask that in your name we would be blessed and Your word would be heard Your wisdom would be experienced in our lives and we would be able to walk out the things that you have taught us. So Lord, we give you tonight and we thank you for who you are what you have done for each one in this room and Lord, we thank you for blessing us just being here together in fellowship with you in Jesus name. Amen. Amen. All right.
So the feasts of the Lord 1 through 44 most of you know, I kind of get to the point in time the time where I have 12 or 13 slides. It takes me about an hour, but I've got 16 tonight. So we're going to
go through it a little bit faster maybe as time goes on. So let's ask ourselves and when we think of all the feasts by name there are seven major what we call Holy Days feasts or rituals that the Israelites were told to prepare and participate in and be able to acknowledge the Lord God of whom they serve. So before we get into that, I want your thoughts as far as some of what we call the holidays, and I'm speaking in a Christian perspective.
With regards to community and fellowship, now think about the church experience that we are all having. So we're talking about our community here in the fellowship that we have. Coming together with believers fosters what when we come together? What does it foster? Okay, fellowship, that's good. Unity, oh my gosh, you must have been reading notes and shared faith.
You know, it's interesting that because of, and I think I shared this somewhere along the line very recently, there was an inside story about the churches in Iran and the Cholomani is extremely concerned as is all the priests that 50,000 mosques have closed out of 75,000.
Now you talk about the graphic idea of the church. There is movement and what is interesting, when God says about revival, He always refers pejoratively to younger generations, and as you look back at the revival that was was brought forth in the the days of Pentecost, those things in the charismatic movement, they always first started in the small ideas of children, of young children, of teenagers. Now what happened in Asbury? College, same thing, young people.
So consequently, there's an idea that we have that we are going to have shared faith and we have unity, so that's one element of what we're doing. So observing the rituals and traditions during the holidays that we all have, and Gail and I were just talking about what we're doing for Easter, what she was doing for Easter. We have these ritual holidays that we express in some Christian format. I want you to think about what they mean to you, gathering with family, gathering with friends.
What perhaps, oh, okay, we're at the end now. Well, we should not be there, and may the Lord bless you and no. All right. Okay, so when we observe these rituals and traditions during the holidays, it helps us to do what? At the end of the game, what does it help us to do? Celebrate? Okay. What else? Connect with each other. Because you know, it's the idea of, okay, Gail asked, are you going over to your kids?
You know, and we're connecting with our grown children. We're connecting with one another. We have feasts, we have times together, and you have a whole house full of people, right? Or you're going somewhere this year. All right. Okay, so we have that. So we're connecting. We're expressing unity. We have a shared faith, and in the teaching and evangelism arena, holidays serve as a platform to do what? What do we do when we're all full of pie and we're, you know, we're sitting back.
Ah, you two, oh my gosh, you're showing your age, girl. How can you take a nap with all the kids around? Will you sneak off in the garage somewhere? Think about it. What do we do? We share, right? We share our stories. We share our lives. We reinforce our Christian identity by those things that we do together. Isn't it wonderful and you're blessed, and you know, I know you have kids out of town too, that when you get together and you hear about their stories, it just blesses you on the inside.
You know, and that's really part of what we're talking about here. And then the teaching and evangelism idea is that holidays serve a platform to what? Again, share our faith, values, and stories with other individuals. You know, and we may not have a Christian group, we may have a mixed group. So we share what we can, sometimes there is successes, sometimes there's not, but we're sharing things that are monumental in our life and our values.
And the hope and the renewal that we're talking about then, many holidays emphasize themes of hope and renewal, inspiring believers to do what? To live out their faith with purpose. And so many, probably like you, you, I know of so many people, they're Christian, but they have no purpose. Well, I'm going to go to heaven. Well, that's just not what only God wants. He wants for us to have purpose in our life. And thinking about the feasts that God ordained, which we will be going through.
God wanted, as we originally went back in Exodus, we talked about wanting relationship. And in that relationship, he wanted to build a nation and in building a nation, he wanted these very things that we're talking about here. So the celebrations now are more than just dates on a calendar.
They are spiritual anchors that remind Christians of God's love and promises to rekindle them with other people and things that you may have forgot about that you're talking about, things that you rehearse with one another, again, kind of stimulates you and sometimes challenges you to say, okay, you know, that that that son or the daughter of mine or my grandkids, I mean, they're really experiencing maybe even a closer relationship than perhaps I have.
Okay, so my question then, which holiday holds the most meaning for you and why what holiday is that Easter? Okay. Why is that because the Lord resurrected from the dead anyone else? You're looking over there. Do you have a net consensus now? Christmas Christmas. Yeah, I was a Christmas. Yeah, okay. Why not a challenge, but a question. Why is it that you like Christmas family? Okay, so family is important up there. Okay, that's good. You got the same. Okay, you got the same.
I think the first answer is pretty close. Easter because that was where, you know, the whole point of Christianity, like the whole fact that he was resurrected, like, you know, when he was born, he wasn't resurrected yet. So Easter is kind of the kind of telltale. So Easter is important. Anything else? All right, Gail. No, quiet. Same thing Easter. Okay, Easter. Yes, same here. So we have resurrection. We have Christmas.
We have things like that that we're dealing with with regard to our favorite holidays now. Okay, before we go on just so we don't get mixed up. There are a lot of feasts that we'll be covering in the first month of the year. There is Passover on leavened bread feast. And again, the first fruits feast. So there is those things that are important in the month of and you can think of a car named Nissan in the first month of the calendar year.
And just to set you forth in the third month, fourth, fifth, and sixth, there's not much going on. But in the seventh month, we are the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Day of Tabernacles. So let's take a look at what we'll be talking about. So verses 1 and 2 of the chapter is just a an exhortation that there are sacred things that are to be obeyed and to given be given us by the Lord. And then verse 3, it talks about the Sabbath and this is not a feast.
It's just tucked right in here. It's a weekly command. It's a weekly time of rest and relationship that we have with our Lord. The highlight that is of that day is a significant perpetual covenant that God made with his people. So getting through that now we go into the feasts, the Passover, verse 4 and 5 again is celebrated the first month of the year and it commemorates deliverance of Israel from Egypt and we'll be breaking these things down.
Verse 6 and 7 is the Feast of Unleavened Bread, a feast of unleavened bread lasting seven days with special offerings. And then verses 9 through 14, the Feast of First Fruits celebrates the first harvest of the year and includes the offering of a sheaf of grain. And verses 15 through 22 is the Feast of Weeks or commonly called Pentecost. It occurs 50 days after the feast of the first fruits and rest after the harvest. And then verse 23 through 25 is the Feast of Trumpets which is Rosh Hashanah.
Again, that marks the beginning of the seventh month a day of blowing trumpets and rest. And then verse 26 through 32, the Day of Atonement which is Yom Kippur as we know it. It's the holiest day of the year for Israel, a time of fasting, repentance and atonement for sin. So finally, the Feast of Tabernacles is what we also call the Feast of Booths and we'll be talking about that. It commemorates Israel's journey in the wilderness and God's provision. So that's the outline that we'll go through.
So let's take a look at why. So we gave our reasons why these holidays are specific to us. The reason that God wanted to establish these and make an imprint on their minds is that he wanted them to remember his blessings. We talked about that sharing his provision and deepen their faith and live in alignment with his principles. That was the goal. It just wasn't random things that were picked out because of the seasons. They were specific to remember what he has done for them.
Just as we discuss these things, his imprint in these wanted to be established in their minds and hearts. Let's take a look at the background now of what festivals were originally. In the pagan nations of Greece and Rome, festivals were established by man to find favor with deities and to prevent disasters which were accomplished, which were accompanied by gluttonous eating, drunken bras and promiscuous acts. So if you remember, there was a God that we said for everything.
There was a God of harvest. There was a God for rain. There was a God for protection. They had many, many, many, many Gods and they had rituals for each one. I mean, they were very busy. So again, that's what pagan nations did and the pagan prophets really spoke against these festivals because of the outcome. When you ended up with a bunch of people drinking wine and having a fun time, what begins to happen? It begins to get very disorganized and all of a sudden there's trouble.
They did not want that but they still had it. However, on the other side, the Israelites were celebrating these things and again, the way they celebrated them was the sanctity of the festival and again, there was no hint of in the Bible of orgies, wildness, promiscuous abandonment connected with these pagan festivals because God pulled them aside and told them about two words that we remember separation and purity.
Remember those words have been given over and over again in his commandments to separate yourself from the rest of the world and to be pure before me. We give a lot of us gave a lot of studies on those things. So the biblical concept then on the other side was the exact opposite there were the festivals were commanded by God but presented the Israelites with again the remembrance of his provision. Now, I ask you the same question.
I mean if we if we think about the holidays, we think of the remembrance of Christmas. We think of the remembrance of Easter of Palm Sunday. We just celebrated so those things that God wants us to remember and again, these celebrations when the people gathered in the temple were testified by Isaiah.
It says in 3029 the Lord's people will sing as they do when they celebrate a religious festival at night and the Lord is Israel's mighty rock and his people will be so happy as they are when they follow the sound of the flutes to the mountain where he is worshiped and again the rejoicing of the whole community again, all of us may be in our separate families, but the rejoicing of that community spirit and it included slaves and it did not condemn other people and outsiders.
They included them the Levi the proselyte the orphan and the widow in Deuteronomy 16. So that's the background of festivals now that it's fast forward now if it's not a secular festival, then what is it? It's where God always commands them to first purify themselves through the restriction of their desires for pleasure and in every time of their celebration. What secular non-religious secular meaning there is a secular job. I have I do things I work for people.
There is an anointed job that I have so secular is something not having to do with with Christendom. Okay, so then the greater of the then greater at the temp they then gather at the temple to participate in the hymns the prayers the sacrifices that we've been talking about so that the place the site the service would influence their sight and hearing with a spirit of reverence to the God whom they serve. What do we do when we come in here?
We sing it remember that we remember things that God has told us in the past. We get our mind set. There is the reverence when we pray. We pray together. There is an anointing in that prayer. Excuse me. I'm going to take a cough drop here. Not good. Thank you. And pardon what flavor hauls sugarless and it has lemon and tart in it. So it keeps me awake. Well, if I give you my last one.
So again, what he is doing is patterning these people to be able to understand what he desires and the end of the day those two words separation and holiness. All right. Sounds familiar to what we have been talking about. He commanded the sacrifice of a sin offering before they ever did this to atone for what they were in sin and he warned the people to stop sinning.
Again, the festivals did what it repaired the divide between the perfection of God and the man's fallen nature because of sin of Adam and Eve. So there we have in essence, what a festival is not and what it was designed to do again, just at the common bottom. If you take a look at the life of Adam and Eve, we had communion in the garden. We have judgment because they did not listen to the commands. God separated them from garden.
There was rebellion and then there was redemption the whole cycle of man coming back to God. Okay, the Sabbath. Let's just quickly talk about that. The Sabbath then was a weekly observance like we observe weekly. It occurs every seventh day. It make it a regular and perpetual holy day. And and my wife and I go through this when she can't make it sometimes you know, I can't make it to church because of us and so she feels so bad about it.
Well, you know, not that we should feel bad, but it's the idea it has become part of our life that what we do individually, we now come together in unity and we enjoy the fellowship of the brothers and the sisters and what worship there is, what message is preached, what word comes into our heart. So that's an occurrence that we desire and want. So there is rest and reflection.
Being a a secular pastor, there wasn't much rest and reflection and you know, when you preach on Sunday and then go to work on Monday and then work all week and then all those things that are put on you. It was tough to find rest, but we are to rest and we are to reflect again primary characteristics of the Sabbath is to rest and the work ceases to honor God's own act of resting on the seventh day after that creation and that's we found in Exodus 28 through 11.
All right, the sacred assembly is the again, the Sabbath is designed as a day of gathering worshiping providing spiritual nourishment and a sense of community. All the things that we have been talking about God instituted then he drew the people out. He wants to Institute in the church today. Holiness something that is obviously part of the package. The Sabbath is set apart as holy.
Reminding believers to focus on the relationship with God and his provision and the way that we do that because we can get so distracted at home or in our shop in our men's cave and I'll speak on behalf of the men or other things that it takes some time to bring us back to draw us together to remember his goodness so we have that and then the again the covenantal significance of this is again observing the Sabbath is a sign of the covenant between God and his people symbolizing their
dependence on him and so often we don't walk in that we walk in independence. I was talking to one sister today. She's back in the back there visiting and we were talking about the churches today. There's so much secularism in the church. You almost don't know the difference between the church and the secular society in some instances.
So consequently the church of the redeemed should be different than what we're experiencing in the world and Hebrews 4 9 and 10 it says so then there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his own works. All right now the Passover here we go.
All right those words pulled up a little bit but it says this it was celebrated in the spring around March or April during the month of Nissan on the 14th day the Israelites celebrated the Passover pointing to God's deliverance and sparing of their life from the death and slavery in Egypt. So again those traditions that they celebrate it was the Seder meal.
Some of you may have participated in that or have experienced that it was eating of unleavened bread matzah it had roasted lamb bitter herbs and retelling the story of the Exodus. So what's that mean unleavened bread again reminds them of the hasty departure from Egypt there was no time for the bread to rise and so they had to bake it quickly and get out of there.
So that's why they remembered that and again the sacrifice lamb reminds them of being saved from the death angel that God sent to Egypt and the bitter herbs represent the bitterness of slavery that the Israelites endured in Egypt.
So there was significance for everything there significance everything that we do in church today the Lord asked us to praise him what do we do we sing we worship the Lord wants to feed us through the Holy Spirit there is an anointed message there is fellowship there's gathering so all these things are still fast forward from when he originated them. So the question that I have for you what might be the significance of the Passover as it relates to us as Christians.
What is that if you look at the Passover what might that be? Okay, but what? Okay, get it. So what else what's that remind us of? Gail. Okay, Jesus was crucified. Yes. Yeah. So the equation is his plan has never changed. There's a new and better covenant that we're experiencing but his plan never changed. Just as the blood of the Lamb saved this Israelites the blood of Jesus saves us from our sins past present and future and eternal judgment and damnation we do not have.
So that's that's what we are experiencing the Passover remind us of our redemption through Christ. We were slaves to sin but through his sacrifice we have been set free. So there is the connection between the Passover then and what we experience now. Okay, so the Feast of Unleavened Bread and we'll go through this it sometimes it gets confusing but we'll plow our way through it.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread started immediately after the Passover when I showed you that chart, it was heavy in the first month and in the third through six month there was light and then there was a heavy festivals in the fall. So it started immediately after the Passover it was 15 to 21 days long and they celebrated the physical departure and journey of freedom from Egypt. So before the feast began all leaven or yeast was removed from their homes.
Why is that Israel was again commanded to eat bread without leaven or yeast which represented the removal of sin and corruption from the Israelites. So there was a removal of those things that were leaven which was the sin and the corruption. So the question what might the significance of the Feast of Unleavened Bread then mean to us today? What might that mean if there was a removal of sin? All right, I won't hold you up here.
How about Jesus was buried during the during the Feast of the unleavened bread. So he was separated from his burial symbolizes the laying down of his sinless body which would then later rise to bring new life to all of us. The sin or the leaven in the bread is buried and the purification meaning the unleavened bread is ours to experience. So there is a connection those are subtle it is there. So purity and separation again from sin represents Jesus as an emblem of this feast.
So there is that connection. Jesus described themselves in John 3 35 is what the bread of life. So as we think of these things we think okay and again the statement has been made many times. What is Leviticus have it's boring. It's it's it's awful of laws. It's this and that well it's just a template of what we are living in today is resurrection power the final atonement for sin. Okay the first the Feast of first fruits that celebrates at the beginning of the harvest season.
So we now jump from the spring into the harvest it's celebrated during the same time as the Passover and Feast of unleavened bread and it occurs on the day after the Sabbath again during the week of the Feast of unleavened bread right in the middle again I don't know how they get all this work done but there was a lot of feasts that they participated in the worshippers would bring the first chief or Omar of barley to the priest as an offering to the Lord and a lamb without blemish grain
that was mixed with oil and wine. And if you remember as we went through those things there were significance for each. I'm not going to repeat all of them. So the priest waves the sheaf before the altar symbolizes again the dedication of the entire harvest to God and acknowledges him as his as the provider for the people. So what significance of the Feast of the first fruits to us meaning Christians. What is this the first fruits? His resurrection.
Yeah, so we have that from the dad again like a grain of wheat dying and later sprouting. What about the grain that they have found in Egyptian tombs that when planted and watered it springs forth with life. It doesn't matter how long that death has been but again there is life in the sea there is life and resurrection and what he's done. So again there is the equation between the festivals that and you notice most of what I'm doing is saying past tense.
There are individual Jewish people that celebrate these things and we don't minimize that but what we have done we have gone from the old covenant to the new covenant all that we're doing is saying okay all this is so new but yet it's not new as you see. It's something that he formed from the foundation of the world. The themes of renewal new beginnings and again dedicating our best to God. Just as the feast of first fruits pointed to a future full harvest.
Jesus resurrection is viewed as a promise to the future resurrection for all who believe aren't you happy that we have hope.
Oh my gosh we were just talking this morning we had prayer over at Meadowwood and there was I forget how many people were there I shared on the crucifixion from Luke 23 and I just wanted to paint the picture that we were all Christian and we're sitting around and was reading this and gave a devotion on it was just so wonderful to think that these brothers and sisters sitting here coming from different walks of life into a retirement situation that we all know that when we
pass from this life to death that we will see each other and we will be in heaven. That's a very comforting thing to think about and realize especially when you're on the other end of life. Okay, the feast of weeks, which is Pentecost now you all ought to know this answer when we go through it. Okay, the feast of weeks then is known as the Feast of Pentecost. It is one of the major biblical festivals.
It was again celebrated 50 days after the first fruits and again, you know, I would think that people would get these things pretty well mixed up but remember they had priests to tell them what was coming when they had to live all their own lives but they had all these different festivals and feasts and again it marks the conclusion of the grain harvest season in Israel.
So the Israelites would then bring two loaves of leaven bread to make made from the first wheat harvest and present them to the priest as a wave offering. So we've gone from unleavened to leavened. Additional sacrifices were offered again including seven lambs, one bowl, two rams, one goat along with grain and again drink offerings. So question, what might be the significance of the Feast of weeks or Pentecost to us as Christians? Yeah, where in Acts 2. Yeah, very good.
Okay, so he sent the Holy Spirit. He was thinking about these things way back when. In the annals of time. You know, you wonder how God could put all these things together to make it all work out. I would get confused in the first millennium.
You know thinking about all that he's done and yet when you look at so many things in the Bible, they're redundant because what his nature requires and wants is what the relationship of people and there's only one way to have that because he's sinless he what he needs to give you an opportunity to get rid of the sin so you can fellowship with him so you can commune with him and be in his presence because without that we won't get there.
You know, we can't bring sin into the camp because again, you know, it says in the Old Testament that he despised sin. We can't bring all that all that part of life into God's presence without doing something responding to it and that is the repentance. Okay, again, 40 days after Jesus resurrection, the Holy Spirit was given to Pentecost. So again, the not the 40 to 50 days.
So Pentecost represents the power of the Holy Spirit and believers to build up our inner man equip us to spread the gospel and live for Christ. So again, there is the endowment of power, dunamos, meaning what the power of the Holy Spirit. It's not in us. It's the Holy Spirit through us. So we have that. All right, the Feast of Trumpets then is also called Yom Teshar, meaning in Hebrew. It is a biblical festival that marks the beginning of the Jewish New Year.
It is celebrated in the first day of the seventh month of Teshara, usually in September or October. So it's the blowing of trumpets that remember what John Kennedy does every so often, right? He gets the horn out, which is the shofar and he blows it. That's what this is all about. Again, the central ritual is the sounding of the shofar and the blasting to serve as a spiritual wake up and a call to repentance and a reminder of God's sovereignty.
So again, how often do we need to be reminded of our relationship when the Holy Spirit speaks to us, could be daily, could be weekly, it could be hourly. God in these providential areas are proclaiming, look, keep the relationship pure, keep the relationship close to me. You're going away. Then there's a festival that comes reminding them of what God's goodness is. People would gather for worship and prayer emphasizing God's kingship. The day was holy and there was no work to be performed.
So what might be the significance of the Feast of Trumpets to us as Christians? This isn't hard. Make the equation. And there was silence. Yes. All right. Jesus, we had the resurrection. He'll return. We are assured that he will return. Aren't we glad that we're not left alone that we are going to see him returning? Ken, are you okay? Oh, okay. Your back hurts. Oh, okay. All right. Okay. I didn't mean to embarrass you. Just wondered if maybe we needed to pray for you. All right.
Okay. You need it. All right. So he'll return. The feast overshadows the return of Christ when the trumpet will sound. Hallelujah for that. In First Thessalonians 4 16 for the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God. So again, there's this assimilation of what he did and what he is going to do.
All right. The Day of Atonement then or young Kapoor as a lot of us know it is the harvest is the holiest day of the Jewish calendar which is observed on the 10th day of to share following the Feast of Tabernacles. So if you're not confused now, that's okay. I mean when I kind of looked at this thing and got it I said she this is you know, and I wonder how they kept all that but I remembered that the priests were what the scribes they were the people that were doctors.
They were the people that prayed for answers to God from from God. They were the intimate. They were the ones that were connected with this. All right. So the primary focus of the Atonement of sins and the renewal of one's relationship with God the high priest entered the Holy of Holies to make Atonement for the people.
Okay. Now here is again a situation that's coming up a bull was sacrificed as a sin offering for the high priest and his household two goats were used for the community and if you remember I was the one that preached on this one goat did what he was the sin offering it was given up. It was sacrificed and the other was the scapegoat that what did what it had the sins of the community placed on it and it was taken out and left in the wilderness for to carry the sins and the transgressions away.
So now this is a big question and I'm not going to give you this answer. As it relates to sin, what is wrong with this picture? Oh, he's always here. So what go ahead. Roger. What? Okay, that's a good word. It wasn't permanent. Right. Any other additions to that thoughts that Gail? It really wasn't complete. It was not complete. The only sacrifice that was given that was complete was what Jesus for our sin.
So you see that there is a redundant need to bring once again these things before God do it again and again and again and like I said to be honest with you, I'm glad I live on this side of the new covenant. You know, I'm not so sure I could do all that on the other side. So Hebrews 10 for it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. It can atone it can cover but it doesn't do away. This shows that these sacrifices symbolically covered sin but could not fully remove it.
Atonement addressed the separation from God caused by sin but not its removal. So consequently we have atonement versus the removal of sin atonement again rituals foreshadowed the ultimate atonement through Jesus Christ the high priest sprinkled blood of the sacrificial lamb on the mercy seat to cleanse the sanctuary and atone means to cover the sin of the people not do away with it.
God only covered their sins which then had to be repeated again and again unlike our relationship with God where he forgave and remove sin once and from for all from our lives. That's wonderful to think about. So there is an atonement activity that goes on even in this day that is complete.
God forgave us and took away our sins by what his death which was complete and permanent removal of that sin as the high priest confessed the sins of the nation over the scapegoat identifying Israel's failings and seeking forgiveness. So must we seek forgiveness of our sins and and ask him to forgive them. So what might be the significance of the atonement for us as Christians. Well he's going to judge.
Yeah, I mean that that's part of it but then ultimately he's going to do what there is a great right thrown judgment that he's going to judge all people. First Peter 4 5 but there but they will have to give an account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.
So again the equation that we have is that similarity in feasts now a caution toward us that maybe our newer believers there's nothing to be afraid of the judgment of God because what the judgment of God is is just declaring his righteousness within the life of those that accepted. Yes for didn't accept and of course consequently there's then the judgment.
So if we are saved hallelujah that we're on the right side of that decision for Christians God judgment is a moment to embrace his justice and mercy that we all seek to begin with and then rather than fear and punishment it is a confirmation of the believers hope and faith injustice in Jesus finished work. Amen for that.
First Corinthians 5 10 says this for we must all appear that you and me before the judgment seat of Christ so that each of us may receive what is do us for the things that we've done while in our body whether good or bad. So, you know, that's where it's at.
That's the declaration of his kingdom you we will be judged but we will be judged accordingly revelation 2012 and I saw the dead great and small standing before the throne and the books were opened another book was opened which was the Book of Life the dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in these books and Matthew 25 21 well done and this is us that's for us like good and faithful service enter into the joy of your reward this verse again describes the final
judgment and the accountability for every individual.
All right in Matthew 25 Jesus speaks of separating the righteous sheep from the unrighteous goats and again these verses show that all people are accountable to God and it's interesting and we have again where we live retirement community older people when you come to them and you if opportunity presents itself and you talk with them and I you know I'm hesitant to say how I talk with some people but I'll not tell you this before it got us with you when hospice is there and they are
dying my question to them is you know at some point in time you're going to meet your maker are you prepared for that and that's a tough question to get out of your mouth sometimes but it's the truth and at that point in time I have nothing to lose because here is a person that is dying that when you know that they don't know the Lord you want to have give them every opportunity to do so.
So I would even encourage you and you in the fray of your life if you're not surrounded by by the environment that we perhaps have more commonly is that when you see older people I was out shopping the other day and there was this old lady doing something old I'm old okay and and consequently I asked her about certain thing I forget what the question was and we ended up because I thought well Lord maybe you know you're talking to me so I open conversation we were walking and it ended up
that she knew the Lord and she was so blessed that somebody asked her and I thought it's okay well you know that it's not that it didn't go anywhere it's just an affirmation to this dear woman that she knows the Lord Jesus Savior so don't discount those things as possibilities think of them as opportunities you just never ever know. All right the Feast of Tabernacles again known as the Feast of Booths. It was a joyful and significant biblical feast.
It was now a celebration again it commemorates God's provision and his presence during the Israelites journey through the wilderness after the after the Exodus from Egypt it begins on the 15th day up to Sherry typically September or October and lasts for seven days it's followed by an additional sacred assembly on the eighth day. So the families construct temporary shelters or booths they were called made of branches and leaves decorated perhaps with fruits and symbols of harvest.
And again everyone sleeps in the booth symbolizing their dependence on God a graphic interpretation of what he's done for them. The first and the eighth day are observed as sacred assemblies focusing on worship offering sacrifices again the waving of palm branches in symbolic worship and prayer. So now last one of the last questions. What may be the significance of the Feast of Tabernacles for us as Christians? I think the fulfillment of Christ dwelling in his church in his body.
The dwelling of Christ within his church. Let's take a look at that. Will dwell among us as King reigning with righteousness and truth. All right. What does all this mean? Let's bring it together. Let's try to let's try to think about this in a holistic attempt. God is forming us into his bride which we are. It talks about that in the scripture which is the church. Okay, that's you and I together to a glorious victorious and mighty assembly of people.
That's what he is endeavoring to do just like he wanted to do with the 12 tribes of Israel. Nothing new under the sun. I think we're further along than they were at least I would hope so. And again each feast serves as a reminder of God's faithfulness and covenant relationship. They had and now we have with him. So when we look at these things it's just not okay this and that and the confusion of whatever.
It's the fact that there are seven feasts in Leviticus 23 and for everyone they participated in acknowledged and did so we have the same and as we go down here the end result of that is saying that we are living on the right side of this and consequently that's what we have. Okay any questions now is it was hard to put this thing into a dynamic but what you want Gail you wanted that okay there you go. All right. You got it.
So we have we have an ability to look back and to experience what they experience through the eyes of Scripture and again happy to say that we're here. So in the covenant that we have which is important. What particular experience looking at those seven really sticks out at you as an individual in celebrating what God originally did years and years and thousands of years ago. What's the most interesting to you.
What's the most thing that the biggest thing that stands out to you now that we've gone through all of them. But the crucifixion. And anyone for that any any takers on that one. Okay. Pardon. All right. That's what we are. Yeah. Okay. Good. And what else? All right. Pentecost. Yeah, that's that's the that that's really brings us to them now. Yeah, absolutely. Okay. Anybody else? Pardon. All right because because that's when God dwells us. Yes. And he is now you're looking to the end right.
That's the end game. Isn't it? Amen. All right. Okay, that wasn't too bad. We kind of had to skip through the tulips because it's no sense in giving Jamie half that the tabernacle series. So, you know, we kind of divided that where things start and stop. So again, Lord, we thank you for your goodness. Lord, sometimes it's difficult to see your hand in these things. But as we unfold your truths that were evident thousands of years ago.
We see your hand identically in the very things that we experienced today. Another culture another time another group of people. But since you are the same and you want relationship Lord, we thank you for building a relationship with each one of us in this room. Thank you so much for your goodness. Lord, we bless you tonight and we tabernacle with you and live with you for ever and ever we do not die. We go from this life into the life of eternity and live with you.
Thank you for that in Jesus' name. Everybody said Amen. God bless you. All right. Thanks for joining us at Lansdale Life Church as we praise God and discuss His Word. Don't forget to join us for worship live Sunday mornings at 10 a.m. Eastern on YouTube. Be blessed and have a great day.