Shemittah and The Feast of Trumpets

Pastor Carolyn Sissom \ September 9th, 2014 (5735 views)

Shemittah and The Feast of Trumpets

Pastor Carolyn Sissom

Sunday, September 28, 2014, the Year of Our Lord

 

“You observe days, and months, and times and years.  I am afraid of you, less I have bestowed upon you labor in vain.”

(Galatians 4: 9-10)

 

This is the Jewish New Year , 5775, but it is also the seven year cycle of Shemittah—Year of release – Year of remission.

 

Deut. 15:1: “At the end of every seven years you shall make a release” (shemittah). 

 

Matthew 26:28: "For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins."

 

Acts10:43: “To him (Jesus) all the prophets witnessed that through his name whosoever believes in him shall receive remission of sins.” 

 

The Christian Holy Days are Christmas, Good Friday and Resurrection Sunday.

 

Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, began at sundown, September 24^th and ended at nightfall September 26^th.   Feast of Trumpets was also this past week.  Day of Atonement is on October 4^th and Feast of Tabernacles, October 9^th.

 

I am addressing these Jewish Holy Days today because of the “signs of the times” "the days of vengeance" (Luke 21:22); and signs spoken by the prophet Joel, “I will show wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire and vapor of smoke.  The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come.  It shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. For in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord has said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call.”

 

Luke 21:25: "There shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring."

 

Jesus is our High Priest and entered in once and for all for us.  Heb. 6:20:  “Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, and which entered into that within the veil; the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made a high priest forever after the order of Melchisedec.”

 

Jesus Christ is revealed and fulfilled in each of the seven feasts of Jehovah.  

 

Some are saying this year is also the year of Jubilee.   Every year since the day Jesus began his public ministry is Jubilee.  The Jubilee trumpet was blown on the 10^th day of the 7^th month, the same day that the High Priest walked through the veil.  There will be no release from corruption and death for humanity and creation until a body of overcoming saints follows Jesus, our High Priest, into the Holy of Holies.  Then, the Lord will roar out of Zion through a High Priestly ministry to minister deliverance and liberty to the earth. (Rom 6: 19-20; Rom 8: 1-25).

 

In the beginning of Jesus’ public ministry, He came to Nazareth.  He went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and stood up to read.  There was delivered to Him the book of the prophet Isaiah.  He read, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor; He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised; to preach the acceptable year of the Lord.”

 

Jesus closed the book, gave it back to the minister, and sat down.  The eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on Him.  He began to say to them, “this day is this scripture fulfilled in your ears.”  The word is “scripture is fulfilled”.

 

Jesus proclaimed the “Jubilee”, “The Acceptable Year of the Lord”, and that it is fulfilled in Him.

 

The second feast day of this past week was Feast of Trumpets.  Jesus Christ called the seven churches with His voice of the trumpet. 

 

“The trumpet is the revelation or revealing voice of Jesus Christ”.  (Van Tanner, the Seven Thunders of God)

 

Rev. 4:1:  “After this I looked, and behold a door was opened in heaven; and the first voice which I heard was as it were a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up here, and I will show you things which must be hereafter.”

 

John 6:63:  “It is the Spirit that quickens; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I speak to you, they are Spirit, and they are life.”

 

1. Passover:  Jesus is our Savior whose sacrificial blood was shed at Calvary (Jn. 1:39; 1 Cor. 5: 6-8).
2. Unleavened bread:  Jesus is the Bread of life, the One who removed the leaven of sin from mankind (Jn. 6:48).
3. Firstfruits:  Jesus is the resurrected Messiah, the firstfruits of them that slept (1 Cor. 15:20).
4. Pentecost:  The Holy Spirit is the Feast of Pentecost. (Lk. 4: 16-21; Acts 1:5).
5. Trumpets:  He is the clear-sounding, living Word who introduced the message of perfection (maturity), the One who was the beginning of it (Jn. 6:63; Rev. 3:14).
6. Day of Atonement:  he is the High priest who atoned for man, the Scapegoat and Lord’s goat who put away sin, sickness, poverty, and death (Is. 53; Gal. 3: 13-14).
7. Tabernacles:  He is all the fullness of the Godhead bodily, the Lord of this feast, the booth in whom the father lived and moved and had His being (Jn. 17).

 

Each of the seven Feasts of Jehovah applied to the Christian reveal our progressive walk in Christ:

 

1. Passover:  We are redeemed by His blood and saved from the destroyer (Rom. 5: 9-10; 1 Pet. 1: 18-19)
2. Unleavened bread:  We forsake Egypt and begin to walk with God in holiness, sincerity, and truth (1 Cor. 5: 5-8).
3. Firstfruits:  We arise to walk in newness of life, knowing Him in the power of His resurrection (Rom. 6: 1-14; Phil. 3: 10-11).
4. Pentecost:  We are filled with the Holy Spirit and endued with power from on high (Acts 2: 1-4; Eph. 1: 13-14).
5. Trumpets:  We hear the call to come to maturity within the rent veil (Joel 2:1; 14-18; Rev. 1:19; 4: 1-2).
6. Day of Atonement:  We experience the baptism of fire as we afflict our soul, humbling ourselves (Jas. 4: 10; 1 Pet. 5:6).
7. Tabernacles:  We receive the full adoption and the redemption of our bodies, becoming a tabernacle for all the fullness of God (Rom. 8: 14-23; 1 Cor. 13: 8-13; Eph. 3: 19; 4:13).

 

“The Feasts of Passover and Pentecost were fulfilled in the church.  One cannot have Pentecost without Passover, and one cannot have Tabernacles without Passover and Pentecost.  The Feast of Tabernacles (with Trumpets and the Day of Atonement) is also being fulfilled in the CHURCH. 

 

Col. 2:8-10:  “Beware less any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.  For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily.  You are complete in Him, which is the head of all principality and power…”

 

The trumpet speaks of a clear word from God at the mouth of His God-ordained ministry (priest); the prophetic voice, the spoken word of the Lord to God’s people through His ministers.

 

 Since the time of Luther and the doctrine of justification by faith; repentance, regeneration; and redemption, there continues to be a progressive restoration and dispensation of the fullness of the Godhead bodily to the CHURCH (Passover).

 

Under the Old Covenant of the Jewish calendar, The Feast of Trumpets was on the first day of the 7^th month (fall of the Year).  They blew the trumpets to call the nation to prepare for the coming Day of Atonement and the Harvest of the Feast of Tabernacles.  There were two kinds of trumpets:

 

1. Ram’s Horns---This was the trumpet of Jubilee.  It came from the sacrifice.
2. Silver---There were two silver trumpets (witness, testimony, and covenant), speaking of Christ in the fullness of His body, or again, the Jew and Gentile in one Body (1 Pet. 1:14-20; Eph. 2: 14-15).  The silver speaks of redemption and is blown by the redeemed.  It is blown by the priest (believer).

 

There were several purposes for the blowing of the trumpets (Num. 10: 1-10): 

 

1. The calling of the Assembly—10:2: “Make two trumpets of silver; of a whole piece shall you make them; that you may use them for the calling of the assembly; and for the journeyings of the camps.” The tribes were gathered together as one nation.  The church is gathered as One in the Lord Jesus.  This is the principle of Unity.

 

Eph. 1:10:  “That in the dispensation of the fullness of times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in heaven, and which are on earth, even in Him.

 

Eph. 4:13:  “Till we come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.”

 

2. The Journeyings of the Camps:  When the cloud moved, the trumpets sounded, and the people were to move with God.  God is moving the Church from Pentecost to Tabernacles. 

 

Hebrews 6:1:  “Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on to perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.  And this we will do, if God permit.”

 

3. The Calling of the Princes: 10:4: “If they blow but with one trumpet, then the princes, which are heads of the thousands of Israel, shall gather themselves to you.”  This was for the leadership of the nation only one trumpet was blown. 

 

4. The Blowing of Alarms:  10: 5-10: An alarm was sounded to warn God’s people of that which was coming.  Those on the East moved first at this sound.  The alarm was not sounded to gather the congregation.  Mt. 24:31:  “And he shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” (Zeph. 1: 14-18)

 

5. The Call to War: 10:9:  “And if you go to war in your land against the enemy that oppresses you, then you shall blow an alarm with the trumpets; and you shall be remembered before the Lord your God and you shall be saved from your enemies.”  This was done in times of war and enemy oppression.  God fought for Israel when He heard this sound.  The church calls upon the Name of the Lord in distress and He brings great deliverance and salvation.” (Our July conference was a “Call to War”.)

 

Zeph. 9:14:  “And the Lord shall be seen over them, ad His arrow shall go forth as the lightning; and the Lord God shall blow the trumpet, and shall go with whirlwinds of the south.  The Lord of hosts shall defend them…”

 

6. The Announcing of Days of Gladness: 10:10: “Also in the day of your gladness, and in your solemn days, and in the beginnings of your months, you shall blow with the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; that they may be to you for a memorial before your God; I am the Lord your God.”  This was the times of joy on the various Festal occasions.  This was especially true in regard to the tabernacle of David.  The church experiences great joy in coming together to worship the Lord. (Col. 4:12; Eph. 3:18).

 

7. The Announcing of Solemn Assemblies: 10:10:  This was for times of a solemn nature, such as intercession, prayer, and fasting.  The church is called aside for times of fasting and prayer.

 

8.  The Announcing of the Beginning of Months: 10:10:   When the church enters a new phase, a new day, then all ministries that hear what the Spirit is saying to the churches will be speaking the same thing.

 

9. The Announcing of the offerings and Sacrifices: 10:10:  As the sacrifices were being offered upon the Altar, the trumpets were blown.  The Lord heard the silver note of redemption and was reminded of the Blood atonement.

 

The trumpets will be sounded to announce the final judgments of God and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

 

Rev. 8: 6-11:15:   “And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound…(Vs. 13) “I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound…(11:15) “And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of His Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.”

 

 

Each month was ushered in by the blowing of the trumpets, but the seventh month was special.  (Lev. 23: 23-25)  This was the day of the blowing of trumpets.  Israel had two calendars:  Sacred and civil.  The Sacred year began in the 1^st month and ended in the 7^th month; but the civil year began on the 1^st day of the 7^th month and ended a year later.  The day of the blowing of the Trumpets was both a beginning of the new and an ending of the old.

 

All trumpets consummate with the seventh and last trumpet.

 

Joel 2: 1-3: Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain; let all the inhabitants of the land tremble; for the day of the Lord comes, for it is nigh at hand; a day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains; a great people and a strong; there has not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.  A fire devours before them, and behind them a flame burns.”

 

“We rejoice in what God is doing in the Blowing of the Trumpets.  There can be no latter rain, no vintage, no ingathering of the oil, corn and wine—without the blowing of “the trumpet in the new moon, in the time appointed, on our solemn feast day.  “It is the Feast of the new Moon! Yes, it is the same old moon that God established in the heavens from the foundation of the world, but now it does enter a new phase! 

 

The very same Church that was established upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief corner stone…but the Church does now enter a new phase of her existence.  A new day is about to dawn! A new life is to be our portion! A new heritage in the Spirit looms before us!  Blow the trumpet” ye ministers of God, sound an alarm in God’s holy mountain, show God’s people their transgression, and call them to repentance.”

 

1 Thess. 4:16:  “For the Lord Himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trumpet of God; and the dead in Christ shall rise first

 

1 Cor. 15:51-52:  “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality.”

 

This evening we will continue with The Feast of Atonement (The Baptism of Fire).

 

Carolyn Sissom, Pastor

Eastgate Ministries Church

Text from Principles of Present Truth from Leviticus by: Kelly Varner; Van Tanner, the Seven Thunders of God; George H. Warnock, The Feast of Tabernacles – The Blowing of Trumpets;  Comments and conclusions are my own and not meant to reflect the views of those from whom I have gleaned.