Today's Scripture
TODAY’S READING SCHEDULE: Leviticus 23-24; Revelation 1
Leviticus 23:23-44
Day of the Trumpets
23 The Lord spoke to Moses: 24 “Tell the Israelites: In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you are to have a day of complete rest, commemoration, and trumpet blasts—a sacred assembly. 25 You must not do any daily work, but you must present a fire offering to the Lord.”
Day of Atonement
26 The Lord again spoke to Moses: 27 “The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. You are to hold a sacred assembly and practice self-denial; you are to present a fire offering to the Lord. 28 On this particular day you are not to do any work, for it is a Day of Atonement to make atonement for yourselves before the Lord your God. 29 If any person does not practice self-denial on this particular day, he is to be cut off from his people. 30 I will destroy among his people anyone who does any work on this same day. 31 You are not to do any work. This is a permanent statute throughout your generations wherever you live. 32 It will be a Sabbath of complete rest for you, and you must practice self-denial. You are to observe your Sabbath from the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening.”
Festival of Boothes/Shelters
33 The Lord spoke to Moses: 34 “Tell the Israelites: The Festival of Shelters[h] to the Lord begins on the fifteenth day of this seventh month and continues for seven days. 35 There is to be a sacred assembly on the first day; you are not to do any daily work. 36 You are to present a fire offering to the Lord for seven days. On the eighth day you are to hold a sacred assembly and present a fire offering to the Lord. It is a solemn gathering; you are not to do any daily work.
39 “You are to celebrate the Lord’s festival on the fifteenth day of the seventh month for seven days after you have gathered the produce of the land. There will be complete rest on the first day and complete rest on the eighth day. 40 On the first day you are to take the product of majestic trees—palm fronds, boughs of leafy trees, and willows of the brook—and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 You are to celebrate it as a festival to the Lord seven days each year. This is a permanent statute for you throughout your generations; celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 You are to live in shelters for seven days. All the native-born of Israel must live in shelters, 43 so that your generations may know that I made the Israelites live in shelters when I brought them out of the land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God.” 44 So Moses declared the Lord’s appointed times to the Israelites.
Revelation 1:1-8
Revelation 1:1-81 The revelation of Jesus Christ that God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place. He made it known by of Jesus Christ, whatever he saw. 3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear the words of this prophecy and keep what is written in it, because the time is near.
4 John: To the seven churches in Asia. Grace and peace to you from the one who is, who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirit before his throne, 5 and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead and the ruler of the kings of the earth.
To him who loves us and has set us free from our sins by his blood,6 and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father—to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.
7 Look, he is coming with the clouds,
and every eye will see him,
even those who pierced him.
And all the tribes of the earth
will mourn over him.
So it is to be. Amen.
8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “the one who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
What do the passages say?
- Our God is the Alpha and the Omega; the One Who is, Who was and Who is to come. God repeatedly told His people them to “remember.” (OT = 137 times; NT= 31 times;). Jesus told His disciples to “Watch” and Paul and John exhort us to be “expectant.” We remember so we know what to watch for and what to expect.
- Leviticus 23 outlines the high Festivals that God established for the Hebrew children. They were different from the worship celebrations of the Canaanites, and Egyptians. The celebrations were given specific guidelines. When Jesus died during the season of Passover, His followers remembered the blood of the Passover Lamb protected the Hebrew children from the Angel of Death sent during the final Exodus plague. They saw the Eternal God acting in the past and in a new way that particular Passover.
- Jesus’ resurrection was the Sunday after Passover – the Festival of First fruits – Paul makes reference to this in 1 Corinthians 15:22-33 : But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at His coming.” He we have a remembrance of a Feast, the remembrance of Christs rising and an expectation of our own resurrection!
There are many instances of Trumpets sounding victory in the Old Testament. (Joshua, Gideon). Thessalonians 4:16 16 For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. Some expect Christ 2nd coming to be in Autumn on the Feast of the Trumpets.
What does this passage mean to me/us? Contributed by Stephanie Dickenson
| What Does the passage Mean to Me/us?
I wonder if you are like me when you get to the book of Leviticus. I just want to skim through. I’ve read about the Hebrew Festivals but they don’t have much meaning for me because we don’t celebrate them. I know I should be attentive to the significance of God’s Festivals because He didn’t give them just to organize the worship of the Hebrew Children. They were given so they would recognize The Eternal Lord is always providing for them, always protecting them, He is always moving to That Day. He is patient when they sin, “For He knows how we were made; He knows we are dust!”Psalm 103:14 God gave the Hebrews the Day of Atonement when one goat would be sacrificed and one would carry the sins of the year past into the wilderness. That was God’s yearly reminder of something to come. One Day His own Son Jesus would be the ultimate sacrifice for our sins, and He would carry our sins away once for all. Even with that yearly reminder, many of the Jews didn’t / don’t believe Jesus was the Messiah foretold and expected. We become so wrapped up in our daily living we become unconcerned about God’s work in our midst, and neglectful of God’s repeated teachings. God repeatedly insists – Don’t work during my Feasts. He wanted their full attention on these celebrations. |
Prayer
Oh Lord, we know You are the Alpha and the Omega. Help us to marvel at Your Eternal nature. Open our eyes to see Your creative presence in our midst. Quiet our spirits so we stop and watch expectantly. Thank you for the Old Old Story of the Passover, and of Jesus. This week, make us mindful of Your love and Your suffering for our sakes. Oh may we all take time to come together to worship next Sunday – Your Resurrection Day. All Glory, Honor and Praise be unto You. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.
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