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#Zola_Levitt_Ministries
03/27/2001 9:08 PM CT
9:08 PM: tovah: Tonight we will begin a 3-part series regarding the seven Feasts God commanded Israel to observe
9:08 PM: tovah: The information concerning the Feasts is an overview, with specific information given as we study each individually during the appointed times.
9:09 PM: tovah: References are from Exodus 12, Leviticus 23, and from various books including Zola Levitt's "The Seven Feasts of Israel".
9:09 PM: tovah: Comparative dates are from Zola Levitt's calendar of Jewish Feasts.
9:09 PM: tovah: Part I: Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and Pentecost.
9:09 PM: tovah: Part II: Passover - Next week we will look specifically at Passover as the time of observance approaches.
9:10 PM: tovah: What is Passover, how do we observe Passover, why is important to know the meaning?
9:10 PM: tovah: Anyone have any good recipes?
9:10 PM: tovah: Where do I get information if I want to celebrate a Passover Seder (meal) with my family?
9:10 PM: tovah: After the class next week, we would like for everyone to share their own Passover traditions with the room.
9:10 PM: tovah: Please plan on coming next Tuesday (April 3rd) and prepare to share with us.
9:11 PM: tovah: You might write down recipes or other information for sending by email or for posting in this room.
9:11 PM: tovah: Part III: (sometime later in April) Rosh Hashannah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot
9:11 PM: tovah: The seven feasts are divided into three seasons of the year.
9:11 PM: tovah: Passover, Unleavened Bread and Firstfruits are celebrated in the spring of the year during Nisan, which is the first month of God's religious calendar.
9:12 PM: tovah: For us, the evening of Passover begins April 7.
9:12 PM: tovah: Pentecost (Shavuot, Feast of Weeks) is observed in the third month, which is Sivan. This begins May 28.
9:12 PM: tovah: The last three feasts; The Feast of Trumpets, Atonement and Tabernacles are observed in the seventh month of Tishrei, which is during the fall of the year.
9:12 PM: tovah: Spring Feasts
9:12 PM: tovah: Passover - "Pesach" means to pass or hover over
9:12 PM: tovah: Unleavened Bread - "Hag HaMatzah"
9:12 PM: tovah: First Fruits - "Bikkurim"
9:12 PM: tovah: Pentecost - "Shavuot"
9:13 PM: tovah: Fall Feasts
9:13 PM: tovah: Feast of Trumpets - "Yom Teruah" (also known as Rosh Hashannah)
9:13 PM: tovah: Day of Atonement - "Yom Kippur"
9:13 PM: tovah: Feast of Tabernacles - "Sukkot" (also known as booths)
9:13 PM: tovah: Leviticus 23:4, "These are the feasts of the LORD, holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons."
9:13 PM: tovah: The Feasts, as translated in Leviticus, have different Hebrew meanings, which include; appointed time, circle or cycle, and also "rehearsal".
9:14 PM: tovah: Not only were the feasts for an appointed time and place, but also reveal a pattern or cycle of life which keeps repeating itself (was, is, will be).
9:14 PM: tovah: Also the Feasts remind us of what has been done by God, what is being done by God, and also are a rehearsal of what is yet to come.
9:14 PM: tovah: The Feasts are to be celebrated by Israel and all who believe in God.
9:14 PM: tovah: History:
9:15 PM: tovah: First let's look back and see how the Feasts are designed to remind us of what God has done. We begin in Egypt.
9:15 PM: tovah: Passover - Pesach 14th of Nisan (evening of April 7)
9:15 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:1-2 God told Moses and Aaron that "this month (Nisan) shall be the beginning of months, the first month of the year."
9:15 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:3-5 God told them to instruct the families of Israel to each take a lamb on the 10th day of Nisan,
9:16 PM: tovah: a male without blemish, and keep it until the 14th day.
9:16 PM: tovah: Each family was to choose a lamb, which was enough for their family to eat.
9:16 PM: tovah: During the evening of the 14th day the entire congregation of Israel was to kill their lamb, and use hysop to smear its blood on their doorposts.
9:17 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:8 "and they shall eat the flesh in that night, roasted with fire, and unleavened bread, and with bitter herbs they shall eat it."
9:17 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:11 "and thus shall you eat it: with your loins girded, your shoes upon your feet, and your staff in your hand;
9:17 PM: tovah: and you shall eat in haste; it is the Lords passover."
9:17 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:12-13 "for I will pass through the land of Egypt this night,
9:17 PM: tovah: and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast.
9:18 PM: tovah: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.."
9:18 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:14 "And this day shall be for a memorial; and you shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations;
9:18 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:29 "And it came to pass ..at midnight the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt.."
9:18 PM: tovah: Feast of Unleavened Bread
9:18 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:29-39 tells us that Pharaoh thrust the children of Israel out of Egypt because he was afraid that all of the Egyptians would die if they kept them hostage any longer.
9:19 PM: tovah: Israel didn't have time to leaven her bread, "their kneadingtroughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.""
9:19 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:39 "and they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they had brought out of Egypt,
9:19 PM: tovah: for it was not leavened; because they were thrust out of Egypt and did not tarry,
9:19 PM: tovah: neither had they time to prepare for themselves victuals."
9:19 PM: tovah: Exodus 12:15 "Seven days shall you eat unleavened bread, even the first day you shall put away leaven out of your houses"
9:20 PM: tovah: On the third day, the 17th of Nisan, Israel came to the Red Sea and crossed over.
9:20 PM: tovah: God drowned Pharaoh and his armies in the sea.
9:20 PM: tovah: For the next 47 days the children of Israel traveled through the wilderness until they came to Mount Sinai on the 3rd day of the 3rd month (Sivan).
9:20 PM: tovah: God instructed Israel to sanctify themselves in preparation for His visit three days later, which was the 6th day of Sivan (May 28).
9:21 PM: tovah: This day would be the 50th day following the crossing of the Red Sea, which would be known as Shavuot (Feast of Weeks or Pentecost).
9:21 PM: tovah: We can see from the Exodus story that the Lamb was slain on the 14th day of Nisan, which is the day of Passover (Pesach).
9:21 PM: tovah: On the 15th of Nisan, the day of Unleavened Bread, Israel left Egypt and didn't have time to leaven their bread.
9:21 PM: tovah: On the 17th of Nisan, Israel crossed the Red Sea, symbolic of Firstfruits (baptism of Moses)
9:22 PM: tovah: 50 days later on the 6th day of Sivan, God gave the Torah on Mount Sinai during the Feast of Shavuot (Weeks, Pentecost).
9:22 PM: tovah: Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and Shavuot clearly show us that God intended for us to remember what He performed in Egypt by rescuing Israel.
9:22 PM: tovah: Now that we know how these feasts remind us of the history of Israel, how were these feasts "shadows of what is to come"?
9:22 PM: tovah: Passover - Yeshua died on the 14th day of Nisan during Pesach
9:23 PM: tovah: Unleavened Bread - Yeshua was in the sepulcher on 15th day of Nisan, the day of Hag HaMatza
9:23 PM: tovah: First Fruits - Yeshua was resurrected on the 17th day of Nisan, the day of Bikkurim
9:23 PM: tovah: Shavuot - the Holy Spirit was given 50 days after Yeshua's resurrection during Pentecost (Greek for the word fifty).
9:24 PM: tovah: Summary:
9:24 PM: tovah: Passover is the feast, which reminds us that a perfect lamb was slaughtered in order that Israel might be saved.
9:24 PM: tovah: With the blood of the lamb upon the doorposts of all the families of Israel, God "passed over" their houses.
9:24 PM: tovah: Later, Yeshua became the Paschal Lamb whose blood was shed and sprinkled upon the doorposts of our hearts.
9:24 PM: tovah: Unleavened bread is the feast which reminds us that Israel left Egypt in great haste, without time to leaven her bread.
9:25 PM: tovah: Also, leaven is used symbolically in the word to represent sin.
9:25 PM: tovah: God commanded Israel to put away leaven from her houses for seven days.
9:25 PM: tovah: Egypt reminds us of the captivity while we were still yet in a state of sin.
9:25 PM: tovah: Once we have been delivered, we should leave all behind and leave past sins in haste.
9:25 PM: tovah: Yeshua was in the sepulchre during this feast, a body without sin.
9:26 PM: tovah: Firstfruits is the feast which speaks of death and resurrection.
9:26 PM: tovah: Moses took Israel down into the sea and they were baptized with him into freedom on the other side.
9:26 PM: tovah: When Yeshua arose from the grave, He became the Firstfruit of all who would follow.
9:26 PM: tovah: Shavuot is the feast, which reminds us of God giving the law to Moses on Mount Sinai,
9:26 PM: tovah: and also, the feast in which God gave the Holy Spirit 50 days after the resurrection of Yeshua.
9:27 PM: tovah: Quotes from Zola Levitt's book "The Seven Feasts of Israel"
9:27 PM: tovah: Passover is surely the feast of salvation. Clearly in both Testaments, the blood of the Lamb delivers from slavery - the Jew from Egypt, the Christian from sin.
9:27 PM: tovah: The Unleavened bread in the New Testament is the body of our Lord. He is described as the bread of life, He was born in Bethlehem, "house of bread".
9:27 PM: tovah: First Fruits is held on Sunday following Unleavened Bread. God wanted a special feast during which Israel would acknowledge the fertility of the fine land He gave them
9:28 PM: tovah: We have come to call this feast "Easter" after the Babylonian goddess, Ishtar, the pagan goddess of fertility.
9:28 PM: tovah: We even continue to worship the objects of fertility - the rabbit, the egg, new costumes, etc..
9:28 PM: tovah: but the celebration was to be over God's replanting of the earth in the spring.
9:28 PM: tovah: We miss a very important biblical truth by not using the term "First Fruits" as the name of the feast,
9:29 PM: tovah: because "first" implies a second, third, and so onand this is the real meaning of the feast.
9:29 PM: tovah: We do not merely celebrate the resurrection of the Lord on First Fruits, but even more so, the resurrection of the entire Church!
9:29 PM: tovah: Jesus even presented His proper First Fruits to the Father.
9:29 PM: tovah: Graves were opened and dead people rose and were seen after His resurrection in Jerusalem (Matthew 27:53).
9:29 PM: tovah: God gave very specific directions for counting the proper days until the Feast of Harvest, which we refer to as Pentecost or Shavuot.
9:30 PM: tovah: "And you shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering;
9:30 PM: tovah: seven sabbaths shall be complete; even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall you number fifty days;
9:30 PM: tovah: and you shall offer a new meat offering unto the Lord (Lev 23:15-16)."
9:30 PM: tovah: The Holy Spirit did come exactly on the day of the feast and gathered a harvest of 3 thousand souls.
9:30 PM: tovah: (Above quotes from Zola Levitt's book "The Seven Feasts of Israel")
9:31 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
9:31 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my feasts.
9:31 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:5 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD's passover.
9:31 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.
9:31 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:9 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
9:31 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:10 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:
9:32 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:15 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete:
9:32 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:16 Even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new meat offering unto the LORD.
9:32 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:17 Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals; they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto the LORD.
9:32 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation.
9:32 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:27 Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD.
9:33 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:34 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD.
9:33 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:37 These are the feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, to offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD, a burnt offering, and a meat offering, a sacrifice, and drink offerings, every thing upon his day:
9:33 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:39 Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath.
9:33 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God seven days.
9:33 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:41 And ye shall keep it a feast unto the LORD seven days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye shall celebrate it in the seventh month.
9:33 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:42 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths:
9:33 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:43 That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God.
9:34 PM: tovah 2,04Kjv24 Leviticus 23:44 And Moses declared unto the children of Israel the feasts of the LORD.
9:34 PM: tovah: Questions and comments are welcomed now.
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