What is Easter?
The following are some of the items that are going through my mind regarding the times that we are living in.
April 12 is the day that we will celebrate Easter. That is a time to remember the resurrection of the Son of God, Jesus the Christ. Do you know the power of the Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead?
What was going on in the Jewish world at this time?
April 8 will find the Jewish people remembering their deliverance for the land of Egypt. (<https://www.chabad.org/holidays/passover/pesach_cdo/aid/671901/jewish/When-Is-Passover-in-2020-2021-2022-2023-2024-and-2025.htm>😉 That is what was happening about 2020 years ago also.
It is called Passover and talked about in Exodus 12:1-51.
It is very interesting to study all the historical happenings that occured during the celebration of Passover, historically. The most important, to Christians being, the resurrection of Jesus Christ!
The Passover that occurred during the Roman war of 70 AD was filled with fulfillment of prophesies.
How do you know that Spring is here? How are you supposed to know when our redemption is drawing close?
Feel free to reply with Scripture and your thoughts.
The following are some sites and things that I have been reading that are relevant to this topic.
The Witness Of Jewish Historian Josephus Validates The Fulfillment Of The Olivet Discourse
The Witness Of Jewish Historian Josephus Validates The Fulfillment Of The Olivet Discourse
This is from 2015 and is very interesting as well as very difficult to keep up with, but very worth while to begin to comprehend what is happening in our world today.
The most important Hebrew word that you will need to know is 'Moshiach'. It is the Jewish word for Messiah.
In the first comment under the video you will find a numbered list of important concepts that are discussed.
I believe that other youtube sites may actually have a transcript of the entire video.
How do we know Spring is here?
Um...new life, warmth, robins, flowers...
If our Redemption coming has to do with new life...I can understand redemption from sin and new life in Christ...but I can't seem to trace the thought to the final Redemption except that it is preceded by Winter, when everything is cold, dead, and unresponsive...like now...
"When the leaves come out, you know without being told that summer is near."
Luke 21:30 NLT
https://bible.com/bible/116/luk.21.30.NLT
I have been thinking lately about what Sabbath means to a Jew and have found it very interesting.
Here is an article by a Jew on why this Passover is special. I thought it was very interesting that He encouraged his people to not forget their anchor. He reminded the Jews that they were confined to their homes on the night of the original Passover because of the plague that was passing over....much the same as today with the virus restrictions. I love reading the Jew's perspective:
I also wrote to a Rabbi this week to ask about his perspective on the Sabbath for non-Jews. He replied that Sabbath was indeed given to Jews alone and gave me some articles to read. I found them very interesting. There are some links below for anyone interested:
The Seventh Day
https://asknoah.org/essay/the-seventh-day
Seven Laws for a Beautiful Planet
I went ahead and read about how the Jews must keep a Sabbath. What I found interesting was how they present it as a joy, something to look forward to; how laying aside the normal things of everyday life, talking about Him, studying His words, and recounting stories of His activity in their lives are ways to return love to God.
https://www.aish.com/sh/l/48971331.html
This is a notable section from the article previous:
"If you are in a relationship and you hear from the other person the words "I love you," there is a nice feeling. But suppose the person never did anything, never demonstrated the love in any way. Words without action are merely... words."
The links to a study including the history of Josephus concerning the "time of the end" broke my heart...I cried while I read...and we think the virus is doing damage!!! This and the other accompanying articles brought so much light to prophecy...it makes me hungry to read it again! One of the statements that encouraged me most was this:
"Messiah promised His disciples a way of escape, that ‘when they should see the abomination of desolation’ (the idolatrous Roman armies, with the images of their idols in their ensigns) ready to lay Jerusalem desolate, ‘stand where it ought not,’ ‘in the holy place‘ of Jerusalem; they should then ‘flee to the mountains‘."
They escaped and Josephus did not record one death of a Christian at the hands of the Romans.
NOT ONE!!!
...and then this:
"Abraham’s experience was symbolic of the natural life that we bring to the Lord.
So long as we trust or depend on our natural capabilities, we cannot enter into the fullness of what God has to offer.
Our best efforts may seem good, but in the realm of the Spirit, they are of little consequence. Any offering we bring to the Lord, including ourselves, must die first, or be sacrificed.
Only then can we be resurrected and infused with the life-blood of Jesus Christ our Savior."
Further explaining the puzzling story of the sacrifice Abraham fell asleep guarding, the author identifies the Word (Jesus...the burning torch) as the one who made the covenant with Abraham to begin with...which resulted in the Covenental People of Israel who remained under a "schoolmaster" (the Law) until .... Then he makes the very obvious statement that I've heard before but never really understood:
"the New (or Abrahamic) Covenant could not be confirmed or ratified until the One who made it died."
The covenant with Abraham was to bring about a people of faith (faithfulness).
"When Jesus sealed the covenant of faith He and the Father had delivered to Abraham, the Sinai Covenant ceased to be. It had served its purpose and was finished!
As the Son died, the Father, the Author of the Sinai Covenant, reached down and tore open the veil that had separated between Himself and His creation."
and this...
"Messiah is fulfilling Elohim’s seven Holy Feast Days that were given to the Israelites to practice until the Messiah came to fulfill them. Messiah was without blemish, fulfilling the Feast of Unleavened Bread; His sacrifice as the Lamb of Elohim fulfilled the Feast of Passover, His resurrection fulfilled the Feast of First Fruits, and His pouring out the Spirit of Elohim fulfilled Pentecost."
Jesus Himself said of the Sabbath...
"The Son of Man is Lord of the Sabbath." (Matt 12:8, Mk 2:28, Luke 6:5)
...and the writer of Hebrews describes the original meaning of the "seventh day"...later known as the Sabbath as "ceasing from our own works"
Hebrews 4
4 For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works.
5 And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest.
6 Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief:
7 Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
8 For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day.
9 There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God.
10 For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.
11 Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest.
I love the video testimony of the Jewish boy...especially when he is so surprised that the things he witnessed in heaven were written so many years ago exactly like he heard and saw them. He too encouraged his own people the Jews that all God requires of them now is to repent and do the works of God...kindness...God's way...study His way!
Wow! Full circle...the Sabbath...the Jews know they need to cease from their "work" on that day to the point of extreme...if they only knew the application was spiritual...repent...cease from our own work...study to hear and obey the voice of God ...to the point of extreme!