Category Archives: Feasts

Sukkot—the Feast of Tabernacles—2016 Is Here! Rejoice

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Sukkot and Shemini Atzeret—The Historical Roots of Our Faith, Present Relevance for Believers & Prophetic End-Time Implications

Spiritual and Ceremonial Aspects of Sukkot

Overview of the Season

Sukkot (also spelled “Succoth”) or the Feast of Tabernacle/Booths or Ingathering is the sixth of the seven annual feast days in YHVH’s plan of redemption for mankind. It occurs in the early fall of the year on the fifteenth day of the seventh month on YHVH’s biblical calendar fifteen days after Yom Teruah (the Day of Shofar Blowing) and five days after Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement). This festival lasts for seven days and directly following it is a separate festival called Shemini Atzeret literally meaning “the Eighth Solemn Assembly” and commonly referred to as “the Eighth Day.”

We see in the early fall a rapid succession of biblical feasts with one coming right after another. It is a time of great energy, excitement and anticipation both in the natural realm and prophetically.

We also observe a transition from the somber and repentant, even frightening, mood of Yom Teruah and Yom Kippur to the joyous and celebratory mood of the Feast of Sukkot, and no wonder, for the first two fall festivals of YHVH represent a very dark and ominous time in human history—the end of the age with the judgments of Elohim being poured out upon the earth (Great Tribulation, Wrath of Elohim, Battle of Armageddon, and Satan being bound and cast into the bottomless pit). But this same period culminates in the return of the Messiah, Yeshua, to rule the earth during the Messianic Age as King of kings and Master of masters. The Feast of Tabernacles pictures this glorious epoch in the history of humanity’s tenure upon this earth—a time of unspeakable joy and triumph of good over Continue reading →

 

Yom Kippur—The Historical Roots of Our Faith, Present Relevance for believers & Prophetic End Time Implications

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Jewish man engaged in morning prayers.

Introduction

Yom Kippur is a day of contradictions and contrasts: Joy and sorrow. Rewards for the righteous and judgments for the wicked rebels. Joy for the righteous when Satan and his demons, death and Babylon are destroyed by the King of kings.

On this day the high priest of ancient Israel went into the holy of holies of the Tabernacle of Moses (and later the temple in Jerusalem). There he sprinkled blood on the mercy seat (Heb. kapporet) and the ground seven times. Atonement was made for the high priest himself, his family as well as for all Israel. On this day the sanctuary, tabernacle, the priesthood and the all Israelites were cleansed. It represented corporate or community cleansing and entering into a deeper and more intimate relationship with YHVH.

The Passover and Day of Atonement are related though different:

Pesach (Passover) is the time of the sacrifice or atonement for personal sin—initial repentance from sins committed before being born again.

Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement) is the time of the atonement or covering of the individual’s as well as the corporate sins of Israel committed in ignorance (Heb 9:27) during the past year. On-going repentance is needed by the individual believer as well as the community of believers in order to stay in right-standing (called righteousness) before YHVH (1 John 1:9).

It is important to note that the shedding of innocent blood for the remission of sins is a central theme to both the Passover and the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) events. The question may rightly be asked, if one is saved by the blood of the Lamb (Yeshua) when he was sacrificed on Passover what need is there of further Continue reading →

 

Time to Prepare for Yom Kippur

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tabernacle-holy-place-257140

This coming Wednesday is Yom Kippur. Are you ready? 

Yom Kippur

Yom haKippurim (literally, the Day of Atonements, plural) is not a one-time thing. The redeemed believer is covered by the blood of Yeshua at the time of their initial salvation, but needs additional covering every time they sin. We need this covering of blood on an individual and collective basis.

This pattern was set in Leviticus 16 when on the Day of Atonement, the high priest made atonement for his sins, those of his family, of the nation and even the Tabernacle of Moses itself due to defilement cause by men’s sins.

We’re all in this thing together. My sin affects you and vice versa. My sins are passed on down to successive generations, and unless I break the sin cycle through the means that YHVH has provided, this sin cycle will continue as it has from Adam to this day bringing corruption, ruination, division, strife and death to all men.

Atonement and At-One-Ment—It’s About Healing Broken Relationships

The English word atone means “to make amends or reparation of wrong or injury.” Atonement biblically means “to cover, purge, make an atonement (Heb. kaphar), make reconciliation, cover over with pitch.” As with many Hebrew words, kaphar means not only to cover over sin (by the blood of the Lamb), but it means “to reconcile and purge.” When we sin, we need the forgiveness of Yeshua and his blood to pay for or to cover over our sin debt. We also need to get purged of the inclination to sin in the first place. We also need to make amends with those we’ve injured in the process of sinning—to reconcile with them, to repair the damage, and to mend the breach in the relationship. When we sin, Continue reading →