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Feast Days of Yahweh the Holy One of Israel:
 By far the best way to determine the real
interests of a person is to note the festivals
that he/she attends.
Festivals are generally happy events, when people with similar interests assemble to celebrate something.
At a festival all the age-old barriers of race, color and class are usually swept aside as people give themselves over to the "spirit of the occasion". And so we have music festivals, sports festivals, film festivals, wine festivals, carnivals, fetes, fairs, religious festivals and Feasts of various kinds. Indeed there is a festival to suit almost every taste and they are all normally well attended.
Festivals are often held to commemorate some important event, and in this connection they may be referred to as memorial festivals. Many religious festivals fall into this category; they are 'memorial festivals' held to commemorate the actions of the various Gods people worship.
This study is of the Feast Days of Yahweh the Holy One of Israel, the Creator of the mighty universe, the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; the One who is intensely interested in the welfare of every soul on earth. Yes, the Almighty has certain memorials. He calls them 'My Feasts;' for they are the Sacred Memorial Banquets of His greatest acts in the Programme of Salvation; banquets to which all His subjects are invited.
Lev 23:1-4 (CJB)
1 (iv) Adonai said to Moshe, 2 "Tell the people of Israel: 'The designated times of Adonai which you are to proclaim as holy convocations are my designated times. 3 "'Work is to be done on six days; but the seventh day is a Shabbat of complete rest, a holy convocation; you are not to do any kind of work; it is a Shabbat for Adonai, even in your homes. 4 "'These are the designated times of Adonai, the holy convocations you are to proclaim at their designated times.
Undoubtedly Yahweh's festivals were initially given to the people of Israel, for it was
His plan that through them salvation was to be proclaimed to the world. But the feasts themselves are the LORD'S, not Israel's or Judah's, but Yahweh's. Remember this vital fact.
Unlike the popular festivals of Ash Wednesday, Easter, Hallowe'en and Christmas, whose observance is nowhere commanded in the Scriptures, the Feast Days of Yahweh are described in the Bible in considerable detail. They are to be proclaimed to and observed by all true believers in the LORD God of Israel. Read about these sacred memorials in Leviticus 23, Numbers 28 & 29 and Zechariah 14. There you will see overwhelming evidence of their divine origin and everlasting nature.
My aim is to draw the church's attention to these appointed feasts of the Most High; to proclaim them to all the world in accordance with this divine direction:
Lev 23:4 (CJB)
4 "'These are the designated times of Adonai, the holy convocations you are to proclaim at their designated times.
A holy convocation is a commanded assembly. In other words, you are commanded to attend and join with fellow worshipers of the God of Israel. This study is part of that proclamation. I will outline the reasons why you should attend the Feasts of the Holy One of Israel.
What do these sacred feasts commemorate?
The answer is: They are the spiritual anniversaries of Yahweh's mightiest deeds; each and every one of them being an eternal memorial of some distinct, divine accomplishment in the great Pro gramme of Salvation.
Let us now consider Yahweh's feast days in turn, for there are several, and open our minds to the profound spiritual realities they represent.
1. The Feast days commanded in the Bible belong to JEHOVAH, the Almighty God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. They are not Israel's or Judah's, but Yahweh's Feasts. "These are the Feasts of the LORD, even holy convocations, which ye shall proclaim in their seasons." says the Almighty in His Word.
2. The Feasts of the LORD God of Israel are, by royal decree, the appointed memorials of His mightiest deeds in the Pro gramme of Salvation; each and every one of them being a sacred anniversary of some distinct, divine achievement in that pro gramme. So the keeping of them is a declaration of faith in the Almighty and His Son Yeshua, through whom the free gift of salvation is offered to mankind.
3. These selfsame Feasts figured in the mind of the Almighty at the creation of the world, some 2000 years before the first Jew was born. Look out for signs in the sun, moon and stars on the Feasts; for those heavenly bodies were created primarily to signal to the universe the 'sacred seasons,' 'days' and 'years' in the Almighty's calendar.
4. The commandments concerning the Feasts of Yahweh are worded in the most permanent of legal terms, which plainly state that they will continue from "generation to generation," "age after age," " for ever!".
5. The staggering total of clean animals (bulls, rams, lambs, goats etc) sacrificed on the Feast days give some indication of their great importance and the manifold blessings the Messiah's sacrifice on Calvary has won for the ransomed people of God.
6. Israel's apostasy reached a climax in the sin of Jeroboam son of Nebat when the nation of Israel forsook the appointed feasts of the LORD and began to celebrate days of their own choosing. Alas! Christendom, in the main, is doing exactly the same thing on a world scale in our day. In other words, the Church is duplicating Jeroboam's sin.
7. All the great revivals recorded in Scripture began or climaxed on one or the other of the sacred seasons and Feasts of the Most High; those ancient revivals themselves being "prophetic previews," "living blueprints" and "types" of much greater outpourings of spiritual power and blessing still to be bestowed upon the obedient church in these end times.
8. The new covenant is made between the LORD God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob and His people Israel and Judah. Jehovah has scheduled Himself to inscribe His law, which includes His Sabbath and Feast day commands, on the true believer's mind. The Almighty's weekly and annual Sabbaths were observed by
The Apostles and the early church for many years after the Saviour's resurrection.
They will also be observed during the millennium by all the nations of the world.
And finally they will be celebrated on the new earth (after the millennial age) for all eternity! These facts amply justify the wording of the Feast Day commandments mentioned at point 4 and prove that Yahweh's Feasts will indeed last "from generation to generation, age to age, for all time - for ever!".
9. By way of contrast the popular holidays of Christendom: Easter, Christmas, Ash Wednesday, Sunday, Halloween etc., are not sanctioned by the Almighty. In fact they are ALL ancient heathen festivals which over the centuries have found their way into the Christian church and because of their popularity have temporarily pushed aside the true Sabbaths of the Creator. They are, infact, an abomination to the LORD God of Israel. Like the sin of Jeroboam, they have diverted Yahweh's people from His appointed times of worship - His sacred seasons, Feasts and Sabbaths. The time has come to jettison these pagan celebrations and to return to the divinely appointed memorials of our salvation - the Feasts of God Almighty.
10. True believers in the LORD of Hosts who really want to please Him should, therefore, stop celebrating the pagan religious festivals of Easter and Christmas etc.; for when a person joins in a pagan religious festival he/she becomes partner with the spirits of evil, the demon host who daily defy the dictates of the Almighty God.
11. Just before the Saviour's return to earth the Antichrist will make his appearance and all the world will be compelled to choose between the Sign of Yahweh and the Mark of the Beast, between the Sabbaths of the LORD God of Israel and the Festivals of Paganism. The lead up to this spiritual election has already began. Multiplied millions, in and out of the church, have already decided what they will believe and do concerning this issue. Now it's your turn. This merely outlines the momentous issues at stake.
And now I will leave you to make up your mind, to decide one way or the other - to cast your "spiritual vote" so to speak. Satan, no doubt, will do his utmost to stifle the rising tide of conviction which this truth about Yahweh's Feasts will produce in your mind. That is Satan's unholy delight. You see he does not want believers to obey the commandments of God. He does not mind them acknowledging God's presence, singing His praises, shouting Hallelujahs or even exhausting themselves in a thousand worthwhile causes: just so long as they do not obey Yahweh's commandments. . That is why Satan constantly stirs up hostility in the hearts of men for the Almighty and His Law.
Because he wants mankind to break the divine commandments, to sin and go on sinning; to join him in his sick, hateful rebellion against the authority of the Most High.
But from the throne of the Almighty you may hear another call. And if you do, it will be the voice of the Master, the call of Yeshua the Messiah, the only begotten Son of the Most High.
His voice will overwhelm your whole being as only the voice of the Saviour and the presence of the Holy Spirit can. And this is what He will be saying to you: "...If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments." (Matthew 19:7)
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