Master Minded Ministries Newsletter - October 2024
It’s October - The Month of the Jewish Feasts and Festivals?
by Paster Dave McGarrah
Does that mean these are just a Jewish thing?
This is such a great question. The answer is…Yes and No! Believe it or not, this is a hot debate among a certain group of Christians as it comes to our participation. This is actually sensitive in that some people can take things out of context and therefore get discouraged in their worship of Christ.
Yes, Christians can observe all the feasts given to Jews, and there are a growing number of them who do, and you can do so as well; however those who choose to observe these shouldn't enforce them on other people. Our mantra is always, “You’re invited, but not required.” The reason there are more and more Christians taking an interest in the Feasts and Festivals is because there are more and more believers who are discovering the Jewish roots of Christianity. Their thinking is,
“If this is what Jesus did, I want to do it as well.” So, how should we look at these important days in light of our Jewish Messiah?
Celebrating these feasts may bring us closer to God, and it definitely will not create distance from God. So why not use it as a chance to learn about our Jewish roots.
THERE ARE SEVEN JEWISH FESTIVALS OR FEASTS OUTLINED IN THE BIBLE
Sukkot - Feast of Tabernacles
While they are mentioned throughout Scripture, we find instructions for all seven laid out in Leviticus 23. In this chapter, it refers to the seven Jewish festivals, literally “appointed times,” also called “holy convocations.” These were days appointed and ordained by God to be kept to the honor of His name. In His instructions to Moses, God says that, “These are to be a lasting ordinance.” These times of celebration are important not only to Israel, but also to the overall message of the Bible, because each one foreshadows or symbolizes an aspect of the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Leviticus contains God’s instructions to His chosen nation, Israel, on how they were to worship Him. It contains detailed instructions about the duties of the priests as well as instructions on observing and obeying God’s Law and the sacrificial system. God designated seven specific feasts that Israel was to celebrate each year. Each one of these Jewish festivals is significant both in regards to the Lord’s provision for His people and in regards to the foreshadowing of the coming Messiah and His work in redeeming people from every tribe, tongue, and nation. While Christians are no longer under any obligation to observe any of the Old Testament feasts, as noted by Paul in Colossians 2:16, we should understand their significance and importance, nonetheless.
Yom Kippur The Holy Day of Atonement
The feasts often began and ended with a “Sabbath rest,” and the Jews were commanded to not do any customary work on those days. Both the normal weekly Sabbath and the special Sabbaths that were to be observed as part of the Jewish feasts point us to the ultimate Sabbath rest, which is found only in Jesus Christ. It is a rest that Christians experience through faith in the finished work of Christ upon the cross. Beginning in the spring, the seven Jewish feasts are Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of First fruits, the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles. The Jewish feasts are closely related to Israel’s spring and fall harvests and agricultural seasons.
They were to remind the Israelites each year of God’s ongoing protection and provision. But, even more importantly, they foreshadowed the redemptive work 12of Jesus Christ. Not only did they play significant roles in Christ’s earthly ministry but they also symbolize the complete redemptive story of Christ, beginning with His death on the cross as the Passover Lamb and ending with His second coming after which He will “tabernacle” or dwell with His people forever.
Passover
Here is a brief summary of the spiritual significance of each of the seven Jewish festivals or feasts. It is interesting to note that the first three occur back to back, almost simultaneously. The Feast of Unleavened Bread starts the very day after Passover is celebrated. Then, on the second day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of First fruits begins.
Passover reminds us of redemption from sin. It was the time when Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God, was offered as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. It is on that basis alone that God can justify the ungodly sinner. Just as the blood of a lamb sprinkled on the doorpost of Jewish homes caused the Spirit of the Lord to pass over those homes during the last plague on Egypt (Exodus 12), so those covered by the blood of the Lamb will escape the spiritual death and judgment God will visit upon all who reject Him. Of all the Jewish festivals, Passover is of the greatest importance because the Lord’s Supper was a Passover meal (Matthew 26:17–27). In passing the elements and telling the disciples to eat of His body, Jesus was presenting Himself as the ultimate Passover Lamb.
Unleavened Bread
The Feast of Unleavened Bread followed immediately after Passover and lasted one week, during which time the Israelites ate no bread with yeast in remembrance of their haste in preparing for their exodus from Egypt. In the New Testament, yeast is often associated with evil
(1 Corinthians 5:6–8; Galatians 5:9), and, just as Israel was to remove yeast from their bread, so are Christians to purge evil from their lives and live a new life in godliness and righteousness. Christ as our Passover Lamb cleanses us from sin and evil, and by His power and that of the indwelling Holy Spirit, we are freed from sin to leave our old lives behind, just as the Israelites did.
The Feast of First Fruits took place at the beginning of the harvest and signified Israel’s gratitude to and dependence upon God. According to Leviticus 23:9–14, an Israelite would bring a sheaf of the first grain of the harvest to the priest, who would wave it before the Lord as an offering. Deuteronomy 26:1–11 states that, when the Israelites brought the first fruits of their harvest before the priest, they were to acknowledge that God had delivered them from Egypt and had given them the Promised Land.
This reminds us of Christ’s resurrection as He was the “first fruits of those who have fallen asleep”
(1 Corinthians 15:20). Just as Christ was the first to rise from the dead and receive a glorified body,
so shall all those who are born again follow Him, being resurrected to inherit an “incorruptible body”
(1 Corinthians 15:35–49).
The Feast of Weeks (Pentecost) occurred 50 days after the First fruits festival and celebrated the end of the grain harvest (the Greek word Pentecost means “fiftieth”). The primary focus of the festival was gratitude to God for the harvest. This feast reminds us of the fulfillment of Jesus’ promise to send “another helper”
(John 14:16) who would indwell believers and empower them for ministry. The coming of the Holy Spirit
50 days after Jesus’ resurrection was the guarantee (Ephesians 1:13–14) that the promise of salvation and future resurrection will come to pass. The indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in every born-again believer
is what seals us in Christ and bears witness with our spirit that we are indeed “joint heirs with Christ”
(Romans 8:16–17). This was also the same date when God gave His Word from Mt. Sinai. (Exodus 18-20)
After the spring feasts conclude with the Feast of Weeks, there is a period of time before the fall feasts begin. This time is spiritually symbolic of the church age in which we live today. Christ’s sacrifice and resurrection
are past, we have received the promised Holy Spirit, and now we await His second coming. Just as the spring feasts pointed toward the Messiah’s ministry at His first coming, the fall feasts point toward what will happen at His second coming.
The Feast of Trumpets was commanded to be held on the first day of the seventh month and was to be a “day of trumpet blast” (Numbers 29:1) to commemorate the end of the agricultural and festival year. The trumpet blasts were meant to signal to Israel that they were entering a sacred season.
The agricultural year was coming to a close; there was to be a reckoning with the sins of the people on the Day of Atonement. The Feast of Trumpets signifies Christ’s second coming. We see trumpets associated with the second coming in verses like 1 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.
And the dead in Christ will rise first.” Of course, the sounding of the trumpet also indicates the pouring out of God’s wrath on the earth in the book of Revelation. Certainly, this feast points
toward the coming Day of the Lord.
The Day of Atonement occurs just ten days after the Feast of Trumpets. The Day of Atonement was the day the high priest went into the Holy of Holies each year to make an offering for the sins of Israel. This feast is symbolic of the time when God will again turn His attention back to the nation
of Israel after “the full number of the Gentiles has come in, and . . . all Israel will be saved”
(Romans 11:25–26). The Jewish remnant who survive the Great Tribulation will recognize Jesus as their Messiah as God releases them from their spiritual blindness and they come to faith in Christ.
The Feast of Tabernacles is the seventh and final feast of the Lord and took place five days after the Day of Atonement. For seven days, the Israelites presented offerings to the Lord, during which time they lived in
huts made from palm branches. Living in the booths recalled the sojourn of the Israelites prior to their taking the land of Canaan (Leviticus 23:43). This feast signifies the future time when Christ rules and reigns on earth. For the rest of eternity, people from every tribe, tongue, and nation will “tabernacle” or dwell with Christ in the New Jerusalem (Revelation 21:9–27).
While the four spring feasts look back at what Christ accomplished at His first coming, the three fall feasts point us toward the glory of His second coming. The first is the source of our hope in Christ—His finished work of atonement for sins—and the second is the promise of what is to come—eternity with Christ. Understanding the significance of these God-appointed Jewish festivals helps us to better see and understand the complete picture and plan of redemption found in Scripture. “Invited but not required.”
A Time to Remember
What happens when you remember? Sometimes emotions come back as well as the memories. Sometimes sweet and sometimes with sorrow. It’s even interesting to note what triggers us to remember something, like smells, music, a spectacular picture, a taste.
Today I’d like to take you on a bit of a study on the word for remember. In Hebrew, the word is “zakar”. We hear it in Exodus 20 when God says, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” Every week we are called to remember, so it must be important.
As I have learned through the years, I have to ask “why?”
Why is it important to remember each week and what is it that I am remembering?
Did God have something important for us that hides in the mystery of remembering?
Within the last 2 months we have remembered 9/11. Do you remember? That awful day where terrorists took control of airplanes and rammed them into buildings in New York City and the Pentagon and another one in Pennsylvania. We remembered the 2,000+ who died as a result. The infiltration into our county, the thought of war breaking out and not knowing who was doing this – we remembered! Do you remember what we said? “Never again!” “We can never forget!”
We remembered 10/7 when Israel was infiltrated by terrorists that killed 1,200 and kidnapped hundreds more. We listened to the horrifying accounts of the small communities that endured unimaginable terror and horrific attacks. Women and children raped and murdered and the videos that terrorists made to horrify the world. We remembered just 1 year ago this happened and asked why! And how could this happen in our time! Unbelievable! After the Holocaust didn’t we say; “Never again?”
Did we – forget?
It’s really a matter of what kind of significance and importance we put on something that has implications for the future that makes it important to remember. We remember birthdays, anniversaries, and people. We remember by doing something that that’s what keeps memories fresh and tangible. I remember some important dates that bring great joy to my heart, and other’s that bring introspection and call me back to who I am and what I hold deeply in my heart. Those are precious to me.
God gave many things to the Jewish people that calls to them regularly. He shows up in those moments that He has declared as Holy. Shabbat is a weekly call to come away and be apart from the earthly to join Him in His domain. The Festivals of the Lord call to them to remind them of past, present and future promises of His goodness and faithfulness to them. This month we remember Feast of trumpets, Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur and Feast of Tabernacles. Every one of these events are significant in their purpose and message to His people, and that means to all believers in Yeshua, Jesus as well. His announcements (Feast of Trumpets), His beginning a new year (Rosh Hashana), the marriage covenant (Yom Kippur) which also has ties to atonement, sitting in the presence of God Himself, being forgiven, reconciled, restored, but identifies the day of return! We return to God for His breath to fill us again, to be cleansed and made whole again! Imagine, a day to remember the amazing call to holiness and be free of a condemning past to face a remarkable future. Feast of Tabernacles is the time of “honeymooning” with the Lord. A time of getting more intimate and familiar with our God. My friend, Moshe says that these are the days that God makes a holy time for us! He knows us by name and Yom Kippur is the holy day that God stops everything to draw nearer to us. Do we remember? Do we remember what it means to be holy? Do we remember how to draw closer to Him to hear Him, to drink in His Presence? Do we take the time and honor it with more than a nod of acknowledgment? How do we remember? Is it important that God remembers? He does!
The word for remember is Zakar. The first letter of this word in Hebrew is a zayin. The word picture for a zayin is “weapon.” Do you think that maybe there is something significant about remembering that becomes something of a weapon that God is giving us? I’d like you to take a few minutes and think about what remembering does for us. Could it be that it arms us for spiritual battle by drawing us into the past for what God has done already? Could it be that we are called back to the authentic roots of who we are and what our legacy is? What does remembering do for you? Does it make you thankful? Are you more tuned into what God is saying to you? Whatever it means to remember it is there to equip you, inspire and correct you. It’s there to be a powerful weapon to keep you from falling into the siren calls of the enemy.
About Masterminded Ministries
Discovering the Jewish Roots of Christianity
Master Minded Ministries is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization that has been working to reach the Christian community with the historic Jewish roots of faith. We are a 3-tiered ministry that hosts a Christian/Jewish radio podcast program called “The Teacher and the Preacher” which reaches around the globe with the conversation between a Christian Pastor, Dave McGarrah, and an Orthodox Jew, Aaron Lipkin. We are on 28 stations throughout the US. Together they delve into various topics that reveal the heart of God for His people and the foundations of our mutual faiths.
We also offer seminars, classes/workshops, newsletters, booklets and videos taking you into the deeper aspects of faith.
Currently we have a ministry for middle school and high school students where we offer a discipling class that continues with a trip to Greece and Turkey in 2025. We have some amazing students who are seeking the heart of God and looking forward to going on this unforgettable trip. If you’d like to help support our students, please identify that with your contribution. Master Minded is projecting to raise $100,000. to help with their trip.
We also offer Biblical Journey’s to the Holy Land, Greece/Turkey, and Egypt where you can see for yourself the sights and sounds that open you up to the land and the layout of the Bible. In 2025 we will host 2 trips, one for the students mentioned above and we have a tentative trip to Israel scheduled for May 2025 to follow the path of Abraham. This is a specially designed trip to take you to places where very few people get to go.
We have 2 websites:
mastermindedministries.org
theteacherandthepreacher.com
You can assess all the podcasts and find out more about the ministry and our efforts to “equip the saints for the work of the ministry.” (Ephesians 4)
We are fully dependent on gifts and contributions from supports to continue our work.
You can find links on our websites to give or you can send your contribution to
Master Minded Ministries
PO Box 127
Huston, ID 83630
This year has been an extra hard year for Israel and we have raised over $100,000 to be able to bless them in various ways. We have supported the soldiers with food, boots, prayer shawls, equipment for individuals and scopes for their weapons. We have participated with our own Jewish community in an evening event to Remember 10/7. We have reached out to pastors and faith leaders to encourage them to consider supporting Israel from their positions.
All this to say, Master Minded is truly invested in blessing Israel and her people. We encourage you to pray for Israel, to participate in our elections because this is going to be critical for Israel’s survival and to live close to the heart of God. Now, today, for such a time as this - we the people need to be who God has called us to be!
Thank you, from the bottom of our hearts!
Pastor Dave and Jerri McGarrah
