| The Feast of Tabernacles is a lengthy article, and takes us through
the entire seven days of the feast and also the Last Great Day. We
will go through the meaning of the feast, and compare the physical exodus
of the Israelites with our spiritual journey to eternal life.
FIRST HOLY DAY EVENING SERVICE Reminder that the Israelites wandered for 40 years and lived in temporary dwellings…..why? To understand fully the journey to eternal life, we will show the parallel between the exodus from Egypt and the path to eternal life. We must have a temporary booth erected before the start of the Feast, so we can sit in it for a portion of each day Lev 23:39 Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when
you have gathered in the fruit of the land, you shall keep a feast to Jehovah
seven days. On the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day
shall be a sabbath.
Lev 23:42 You shall live in booths seven days. All that are
born Israelites shall live in booths,
Reminder that we need to spend time in our booth each day during the feast, we don’t need to live in the booth, just dwell in it each day during the feast. Neh 8:17 And all the congregation of those who had come again
out of the captivity made booths, and sat under the booths. For
since the days of Joshua the son of Nun until that day, the sons of Israel
had not done so. And there was very great gladness.
We are going to repeat each day of the feast what the feast actually pictures, as this is new knowledge for us and needs to be learnt and understood. To repeat this knowledge every day is the best way to remember what the feast pictures. The feast pictures the Israelites wandering for 40 years in the wilderness, dwelling in booths. Lev 23:34 Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, The fifteenth
day of this seventh month shall be the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days
to Jehovah.
Each day of the feast we will look at a different occurrence during that time to learn from the errors made along the journey which we must avoid if we want to attain what the Israelites did not do.... want the promised land and enter it. Every day at the feast the book of the law is to be read, this should happen every seventh year. As we do not know which year we are in, we will read it every year, Why...because we love this book and we can learn a lot from it every feast. Deu 31:10 And Moses commanded them, saying: At the end of seven
years, at the set time of the year of release, in the Feast of Tabernacles,
Starting tomorrow the first holy day we will read the first five chapters of the book of Deuteronomy Tonight we will look at the first subject
This is new knowledge restored to this era of the church. We have not had a correct knowledge of the Father or Christ. Do not read over this verse, read it and re read it, until the meaning of it sinks in. There is one true God and that is the Father. Joh 17:3 And this is life eternal, that
they might know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have
sent.
The Father is the only one who has existed for all eternity. He
is the one True God.
Col 1:15 who is the image of the invisible God, the First-born
of all creation.
LETS GET THESE FACTS CLEAR IN OUR MINDS, FIRST THERE WAS THE FATHER,
HE EXISTED ON HIS OWN, THEN CHRST WAS BORN TO HIM BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE
EXISTED. {if you want to know how this happened you will need to ask God,
we do not know, but because it is in scripture, we are prepared to believe
it.
God the Father is above Christ He is not equal to Christ, in authority, and never has been, He is the Father, the self existing one. Christ is His Son and is second to Him in everything. Joh 14:28 You have heard how I said to
you, I go away and I am coming to you again. If you loved Me, you would
rejoice because I said, I go to the Father, for My Father is greater than
I.
1Co 15:27 For He put all things under His feet. But when He
says that all things have been put under His feet, it is plain that it
excepts Him who has put all things under Him.
Christ has not existed for eternity, He is from the beginning Christ is equal to the Father as a son is equal to his father. Joh 5:18 Then, because of this, the Jews sought the more to kill Him, because He not only had broken the sabbath, but also said that God was His father, making Himself equal with God. Joh 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God.
The beginning is a point in time, look at Genesis 1 v 1 in the beginning
God made…..now that was a particular time, before that time, the heaven
and earth did not exist.
He was born to God before creation, The Father created all things through Christ Eph 3:9 and to bring to light what is the fellowship of the
mystery which from eternity has been hidden in God, who created all things
by Jesus Christ;
CHRIST WAS THE BORN SON OF GOD BEFORE CREATION.
We are not talking about the birth of Jesus out of Mary here.
We are talking about a birth which happened before creation. We also
want to state emphatically that we are not saying Christ was created
Secondly the Passover. The Passover has been kept on the 13th of Nisan during the Philadelphian era of the church. Prepared 13th eaten 14th. This was the correct day for that era because they did not have the knowledge of eternal life. There are three points which must be known for eternal life in the keeping of the Passover. They are eating the body, drinking the blood and keeping it on the correct day. The Philadelphian era had only the blood and the body, they did not have the knowledge of the correct day. To have eternal life, which is now available, in the Laodicean era, we eat the bread, drink the blood, prepared on the 14th taken after sunset on the start of the 15th. This is the knowledge of eternal life, the bread the blood taken on the correct day. Ancient Israel had the correct day and ate the body {when they sacrificed the lamb} but they did not drink the blood, they put it on the door posts. Philadelphia era, accepted Christs sacrifice, so we didn’t kill the
lamb, they ate the meat on the correct night, {night to be much remembered}but
not the blood, we actually kept two Passovers, the 13th {bread and blood
but wrong date }and the 14th
Laodicean era now has the knowledge of the bread, the blood, and the
correct day.
It is one of the keys to the kingdom. We must understand the correct meaning of the Passover and keep it on the correct day to have eternal life. We will not accept the knowledge of the correct day for the Passover until God opens our minds to the new knowledge which is required for Eternal life. This knowledge must be believed and loved in order to qualify for eternal life. Act 13:48 And hearing, the nations rejoiced and glorified the
Word of the Lord. And as many as were ordained to eternal life believed.
2Th 2:10 and with all deceit of unrighteousness in those who
perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, so that they
might be saved.
To keep the Passover on the correct day is the second step to eternal life. The Passover is on the 14th Nisan. This is the day that Christ
died, this is the day that the lambs were killed.
Today the Passover service is held after sunset at the start of the
15th.
Joh 19:14 And it was the preparation of the Passover, and about
the sixth hour. And he said to the Jews, Behold your king!
The actual service starts after sunset on the beginning of the 15th. THE PASSOVER SERVICE IS HELD IN THE HOLY DAY AT THE START OF THE FIRST DAY OF UNLEAVENED BREAD. The following scripture shows Christ keeping the last Passover with His disciples, this scripture shows the Passover was prepared in the day and eaten after sunset the start of the following day Mat 26:19 And the disciples did as Jesus had appointed them.
And they made the passover ready.
Once you take the Passover service and eat unleavened bread, you do not go back to eating leaven for one day and then start unleavened bread again. These days tie in with the exodus, the death angel passed over the Israelites home at midnight after the first day of unleavened bread had started, the Israelites left Egypt some 4 hours or so after this on the 15th, they did not wait in Egypt they were compelled to leave quickly by the Egyptians. They left Egypt in the early hours of the morning on the 15th which is the 1st day of unleavened bread. Christ kept the Passover one day early with His disciples only on ONE OCCASION because He was the Passover lamb He had to die on the Passover day, so He would be dead at the correct time for keeping it today. THIS POINT MUST BE UNDERSTOOD BY THE READER. Lets notice the events of the Passover in Egypt and see how it is clearly shown when the events happened. The lamb is to be killed around 3-5 pm before sunset on the 14th This is the preparation day this is the Passover day. Exo 12:6 And you shall keep it up until the fourteenth day
of the same month. And the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel
shall kill it in the evening.
Put the blood on the door posts. Exo 12:7 And they shall take some of the blood and strike on
the two side posts and upon the upper door post of the houses in which
they shall eat it.
Eat a few hours later, after sunset, with unleavened bread, why……because it is now the first day of Unleavened Bread, Exo 12:8 And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roasted
with fire, and unleavened bread. They shall eat it with bitter herbs.
Look how they had to eat it, ready to leave, because if they ate it around 7 pm they were going to leave in approximately 8 hours time. Exo 12:11 And you shall eat of it this way, with your loins
girded, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. And you
shall eat it in a hurry. It is Jehovah's passover.
The following scripture clearly shows that the Israelites left Egypt on the first day of unleavened bread. Exo 12:17 And you shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
For in this same day I have brought your armies out of the land of Egypt.
Therefore you shall keep this day in your generations by a law forever.
Now when did the Israelites keep the Passover. Some 12 hours previously they prepared the Passover, after sunset the start of the 1st day of unleavened bread they ate it. Then some time after midnight on the first day of unleavened bread they left Egypt as per Ex. 12 v 17. Notice clearly that the Israelites kept the Passover, and left Egypt within a 12 hour period approximately. At midnight the destroyer passed over and killed the firstborn Egyptians. Ex. 12 v 23 tells of the destroyer. Exo 12:29 And it happened at midnight Jehovah struck all the
first-born in the land of Egypt, from the first-born of Pharaoh that sat
on his throne to the first-born of the captive that was in the prison;
also all the first-born of cattle.
This event probably happened around 1 am. Notice it is still night Exo 12:30 And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he and all his
servants, and all the Egyptians. And there was a great cry in Egypt, for
there was not a house where there was not one dead.
Then Pharaoh called for Moses, but he did not go to the Pharaoh in accordance with Ex 10 v 29, therefore Moses must have received word from him to get out with haste as the next verses plainly show. Exo 12:31 And he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said,
Rise up! Get away from my people, both you and the sons of Israel! And
go serve Jehovah, as you have said.
The Egyptians wanted them to get out urgently, lest they all should die. Exo 12:33 And the Egyptians were urging the people, that they
might send them out of the land in a hurry. For they said, We are all dead.
The Israelites left in the night time, probably around 3 am. Exo 12:34 And the people took their dough before it was leavened,
their kneading-troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.
The spoiling of the Egyptians had already happened, when Moses was getting the Israelites ready to leave, the spoiling did not take place that morning. The spoiling took place some time earlier. Exo 12:35 And the sons of Israel did according to the word
of Moses. And they asked articles of silver, and articles of gold, and
clothing from the Egyptians.
Notice that the Israelites took the spoil quite some time previously
Exo 3:22 But every woman shall ask of her neighbor, and of her that stays in her house, jewels of silver and jewels of gold and clothing. And you shall put them upon your sons and upon your daughters. And you shall plunder the Egyptians. We have proved clearly that the Passover is the 14th the service is
to be kept after sunset start of the 15th, which is the fist day of unleavened
bread. This new knowledge must be believed and loved if we want eternal
life.
All the original Israelites over 20 years old, all died before
crossing the Jordan and entering the promised land.
1ST DAY HOLY DAY Morning Service. 1st Service……We are temporary in this life now……that is the same as the Israelites living in booths, it was a temporary condition. spiritual life is permanent. Live towards our spiritual life, and be less concerned with our physical. What does the feast picture, the fact that the Israelites dwelt in booths during the 40 years in the wilderness, each day we are going to repeat this, and recap on what we have learned the day before. We have such a lot of new knowledge, we don’t want to miss anything. Lev 23:42 You shall live in booths seven days. All that are
born Israelites shall live in booths,
Notice verse 43 Lev 23:43 so that your generations may know that I made the sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt. I am Jehovah your God. Lets recap on what we learned last night. To understand the knowledge
of eternal life, we have to know Jesus and God the Father, we need to know
that the Father is the one true God, and that Jesus is the born son of
God, before creation.
The Feast pictures the looking back to the time of wandering for 40 years in the wilderness and living in booths for this time. The Israelites rejected the Holy Spirit of Power or Truth twice during this time. Firstly at Marah shortly after crossing the Red Sea and secondly when they reached the Jordan, and spied out the Promised Land. Exo 15:25 And he cried to Jehovah. And Jehovah showed him a
tree. And when he had cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet.
There He made a decree and a law for them, and there He tested them.
Jer 2:13 For my people have committed two evils; they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water. When the Israelites came initially to the promised land, only Joshua and Caleb brought back a good report. The other ten spies did not want the promised land. Notice the evil report of the promised land given by the other ten spies. Num 13:31 But the men that went up with him said, We are not
able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.
There is a parallel between the Israelites journey from the crossing of the Red Sea till they finally crossed the Jordan river and entered the Promised Land, and our spiritual journey, of baptism, receiving the Earnest of the Spirit, our period of testing, and finally believing God, accepting the knowledge that leads to eternal life, and the receiving of the Spirit of Power or Truth which is eternal life inherent. We will look at this amazing parallel during the feast and learn as Gods plan for man unfolds. Today our subject is the parrallel of crossing the Red Sea. Let’s look at the crossing of the Red Sea This was three days from the killing of the Passover lamb. The Red Sea parted all night, this happened three days from when the
Passover lambs were killed.
After the sun has set it is the 15th the first day of unleavened bread,
Thursday. The Holy Day, the Israelites leave Egypt…they travel Thursday
and pitch their tents at Succoth.
The crossing of the Red Sea is at the same time of Christ being raised from hell.[or heart of the earth] This was completed Sunday morning. Christ was three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. Incredible as it may seem to us, that is all it took for the Israelites to travel from Goshen to the Red Sea, that is because God took them on eagles wings. Exo 19:4 You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and I bore you on eagles' wings and brought you to Myself. When Christ was raised He appeared to Mary on Sunday morning, but Christ had not gone to the Father at this time. Joh 20:17 Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God. If the Israelites departed from Egypt on the same days as Christs death we will show the same days and events. Late Wednesday between 3-5 pm kill the lambs {Passover} Christ died at this time.
After sunset start of Thursday night {now 1st day of unleavened bread}
put blood on doors. Eat Passover meal. Possibly around 7-8 pm.
Christ was in the heart of the earth [hell] three days and three nights.
Thursday Friday and Saturday are the three days
Exo 14:21 And Moses stretched out his hand over the sea. And
Jehovah caused the sea to recede by a strong east wind all that night,
and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided.
Arrive on the other side of the Red Sea Sunday morning Christ raised from the heart of the earth [hell] sometime between Saturday night and Sunday morning. After Christ appeared to Mary then Christ ascended to the Father on Sunday morning. Exo 14:24 And in the morning watch it happened that Jehovah looked to the army of the Egyptians through the pillar of fire and of the cloud, and troubled the army of the Egyptians. As the Israelites came through the Red Sea they reached the other side where the promised land was available. The Israelites were not at the promised land when they came out of Egypt. Christ, after His death was to be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth and then be raised. The parting of the Red Sea corresponds to the time between Christ being raised from the dead and His ascendence to the Father to be glorified. JOHN 20 v 1,17. Joh 20:1 The first day of the week Mary Magdalene came
early to the tomb, darkness still being on it, and she saw the stone taken
away from the tomb.
Joh 20:17 Jesus said to her, Do not touch Me, for I have not yet ascended to My Father. But go to My brothers and say to them, I ascend to My Father and Your Father, and to My God and your God. When Christ was glorified applies to those who have eternal life inherent,
that is why Christ said My God and your God.
The parting of the Red Sea made the way to the promised land available. The resurrection , raising from the dead and glorification of Jesus Christ made eternal life available. Note this very carefully, at our baptism we have eternal life available we do not at that time have eternal life. Eph 1 v 13,14. Eph 1:13 in whom also you, hearing the Word of Truth, the gospel
of our salvation, in whom also believing, you were sealed with the Holy
Spirit of promise,
As the Israelites crossed the Red Sea they left Egypt and came to where the promised land was available. They had a lot more trials and tribulations before some of them actually entered the promised land. Only Joshua and Caleb and those who were under 20 years old [at the time of the rejection of the promised land} entered into the promised land. God calls us out of Egypt {sin} to where the promised land {Eternal Life} is available. We have a lot of trials and tribulations before we reach eternal life. The crossing of the Red Sea made the promised land available, in parallel, eternal life is available once we are baptised and receive the earnest of the spirit. The crossing of the Red Sea is a type of our baptism 1Co 10:1 And, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant that
all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea.
When we are baptised we try to leave sin behind {which in this case
is pictured by Egypt} then we are subject to many trials etc {which pictures
the wondering in the wilderness}
When the Israelites crossed the Red Sea eternal life was available to
them also, in the form of the Promised Land.
1ST HOLY DAY 2ND SERVICE Let's recap on what we have learned so far.
Lev 23:41 And ye shall keep it a feast unto the LORD seven
days in the year. It shall be a statute for ever in your generations: ye
shall celebrate it in the seventh month.
We have learned that in order to received eternal life, we must know
the Father and Christ, we must also keep the Passover on the correct day.
For this afternoons service we will look at what happened at Marah, on the last day of Unleavened Bread. Only one week after leaving Egypt. The rejection of the fountain of living waters, God the Father and the Holy Spirit. Once the Israelites crossed the Red Sea, they then began their journey toward the promised land. It is the same for us after baptism, we must push on and overcome and develop character during this time. On the last day of Unleavened Bread which was 3 days after the miraculous crossing of the Red Sea the Israelites came to Marah where they rejected God and the Holy Spirit Exo 15:23 And when they came to Marah, they could not drink
of the waters of Marah, because it was bitter. Therefore the name of it
was called Marah.
Jer 2:13 For My people have committed two evils; they have
forsaken Me, the Fountain of living waters, to hew out cisterns for themselves,
broken cisterns that can hold no water.
After baptism we soon learn that we do not take very long before we
fall into the ever present snare of sin. It was the same for the
ancient Israelites, they sinned very quickly after the Passover and continued
to do so during unleavened bread.
Jer 2:11 Has a nation changed their gods who are yet no gods?
But My people have changed their Glory for that which does not profit.
Jer 17:13 O Jehovah, the Hope of Israel, all who forsake You shall be ashamed. Those who depart from Me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken Jehovah, the Fountain of living waters. The Israelites rejected God, the fountain of living waters, this living
water is mentioned in John 4 v 10-15 this is a symbol of the Holy Spirit
and in this case it is also a symbol of the Father.
Lets compare the two accounts of the Israelites in the wilderness and the Samaritan woman in the gospel of John. They were both offered living waters, which lead to eternal life. Joh 4:5 Then He came to a city of Samaria, called Sychar, near
the parcel of ground that Jacob gave to his son Joseph.
Jesus told the woman, that if she had known who He was, she would have asked for the gift of God which was living waters. Joh 4:9 Then the woman of Samaria said
to Him, How do you, being a Jew, ask a drink of me, who am a woman of Samaria?
For the Jews do not associate with Samaritans.
Christ shows how the water, which He has to give, will spring up to everlasting life, the living waters pictures the holy spirit. Christ also shows the contrast between the usual drinking water and the living water. If she chose to reject the living water she would continue to thirst, but she wanted the living waters Christ had to offer her. Joh 4:13 Jesus answered and said to her,
Whoever
drinks of this water shall thirst again,
Notice how the woman wanted the living water. Joh 4:15 The woman said to Him, Sir,
give me this water, so that I may not thirst nor come here to draw.
Notice that after Christ told the woman about the living waters, which He could give her, He then proved her to see if she told the truth. Joh 4:16 Jesus said to her, Go,
call your husband and come here.
Notice the woman told the truth, and wanted the living waters. Joh 4:17 The woman answered and said, I have no husband. Jesus
said to her, You have well said, I have no husband
Later in the account notice she brought other Samaritans to Christ and
they believed in Him.
Joh 4:23 But
the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers shall worship
the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such to worship Him.
The following verse is interesting, the woman no longer has any interest in the normal drinking water which she had originally came to draw. Once she heard of the living waters, which Christ was willing to offer her, she had no desire for the physical water, only the living water. Joh 4:28 The woman then left her waterpot and went into the city and said to the men, Now lets compare this account with Exodus 15 In John 4 v 7 the woman came to the well to draw water, she needed water.
Exo 15:22 And Moses brought Israel from the Red Sea, and they
went out into the wilderness of Shur. And they went three days in the wilderness,
and found no water.
In John 4 v 10 if the woman knew it was God who was speaking to her she would have asked for living water. The Israelites knew that God was with them, they had only just come through the Red Sea, they were at the waters of Marah, they were thirsty, so why didn’t they behave patiently and wait on God to see what He would say to them. Unfortunately even after the miracle of crossing the Red Sea, they so quickly forgot that, they didn’t believe God or trust Him. They were only interested in the physical things. In their physical needs and desires. They were quick to complain to, and about Moses. Exo 15:24 And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What
shall we drink?
In John 4 v 13-14 Jesus explained to the woman that if she drank of the physical water she would thirst again, but the water He had to offer her would spring up to eternal life Joh 4:13 Jesus answered and said to her,
Whoever
drinks of this water shall thirst again,
The Israelites were only concerned in the physical water, God gave them
a statute and an ordinance and he proved them. They were offered
the choice of the living water or the physical water, they chose the physical,
they rejected God and the living water which is a symbol of the holy spirit,
God was offering them eternal life and they rejected it.
Exo 15:25 And he cried to Jehovah. And Jehovah showed him a tree. And when he had cast it into the waters, the waters were made sweet. There He made a decree and a law for them, and there He tested them. Jer 2:13 For My people have committed two evils; they have
forsaken Me, the Fountain of living waters, to hew out cisterns for themselves,
broken cisterns that can hold no water.
John 4 v 15 states that the woman wanted the living waters.
John 4 v 16 shows that Christ proved the woman. Notice the Israelites were also tested. Ex 15 v 25 ……and there he proved them John 4 v 17-19 shows that the woman passed the test and answered Christ
truthfully.
Exo 15:26 And he said, If you will carefully listen to the
voice of Jehovah your God, and will do that which is right in His sight,
and will give ear to His commandments, and keep all His Laws, I will put
none of these diseases upon you, which I have brought upon the Egyptians;
for I am Jehovah who heals you.
John 4 v 23 shows that the Father wants people to worship Him in spirit
and truth.
Jer 2:19 Your own evil shall correct you, and your backslidings
shall reprove you, therefore know and see that it is an evil and bitter
thing that you have forsaken Jehovah your God, and that My fear is not
in you, says the Lord Jehovah of Hosts.
Notice in John 4 v 28 how when the woman learned about the gift of God..the
living water, she no longer cared about the physical water, she only wanted
the spiritual gift of God. She left her waterpot.
Jer 2:13 For My people have committed two evils; they have
forsaken Me, the Fountain of living waters, to hew out cisterns for themselves,
broken cisterns that can hold no water.
Israel brought all their trouble on themselves because they rejected God. Jer 2:17 Have you not brought this on yourself, in that you
have forsaken Jehovah your God, when He led you by the way?
Jer 2:19 Your own evil shall correct you, and your backslidings shall reprove you, therefore know and see that it is an evil and bitter thing that you have forsaken Jehovah your God, and that My fear is not in you, says the Lord Jehovah of Hosts. Lets recap on what we have learned.God brought the Israelites out of
Egypt we must leave the old ways of this world behind us, we must
try to live our lives without sin, we must try to be like Christ.
The last day of Unleavened Bread is a solemn day, it pictures the fact
that Israel were offered living waters which spring up to eternal life,
God offered to heal them in return for obedience to His laws.
We have shown that as the Israelites journeyed toward the promised land, they rejected God and the Holy spirit, as early as three days after crossing the Red Sea. Many people who have been called have done this, and the greater majority of humanity wants very little, if anything, to do with God today. Those who profess Christianity, do so on their terms, certainly not on Gods. What God says to do is either ignored or pushed into the outdated basket or reasoned away by most professing Christians today. Gods laws, Sabbaths, statutes are just ignored and labeled Jewish or some such thing. Very few are concerned with what God wants. If we choose the fountain of living waters we still need physical food and water and God promises to provide these needs if we put Him first in our lives. Mat 6:33 But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you. We must be careful to worship God in truth and in Spirit, if we are
to gain eternal life. We must be prepared to accept the new truths
God is revealing to His end time church.
2ND DAY OF THE FEAST Lets recap again about what we have learned, the Feast pictures the
dwelling in booths for 40 years by the Israelites.
Lev 23:41 And you shall keep it a feast to Jehovah seven days
in the year. It shall be a statute forever in your generations. You shall
keep it in the seventh month.
The first truths we must learn to gain eternal life is the truth about
the Father and Christ. Then we must learn about the correct date
for the Passover. Then we looked at the parallel between the crossing of
the Red Sea and Christ
How do we keep the feast today, both spiritually and physically, the reading of the book of Deuteronomy. every 7 years. Sharing with others, fellowship, sing hymns prayer and bible study. And live the good life during the feast Today we will parallel the rejection of the promised land by the Israelites,
to our calling today.
Mat 22:14 For many are called, but few
chosen.
Lets look at the parable of the sower explained by Jesus
Mat 13:18 Therefore hear the parable
of the sower.
We see explained in this parable how some people are easily taken away from the truth, some endure for a little while, but when things get too hard, they give it away, then others are just too busy with the physical things, then the last group who bear fruit. Even in the fruitful group, some put in more effort than others, 100 fold down to 30. It was the same with the Israelites, when God brought them to the promised
land, He sent 12 spies to check out the land. Only two of them brought
back a good report.
Notice the men who searched out the promised land were leaders of the tribes of Israel. Num 13:3 And Moses by the command of Jehovah sent them from the wilderness of Paran. All those men were heads of the sons of Israel. Num 13:17 And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan,
and said to them, Go up this way, southward, and go up into the mountain.
This is the evil report that the leaders of Israel brought back Firstly it was fertile land, the produce they brought back was huge. Num 13:27 And they told him and said, We came to the land where
you sent us, and surely it flows with milk and honey. And this is the fruit
of it.
The leaders thought it was too fortified for them to take the cities, and there were giants there. Num 13:28 However, the people that dwell in the land are strong,
and the cities are walled, very great. And also we saw the children of
Anak there.
Today we face the same problems, it is not an easy stroll into the kingdom
of God, we have to face and overcome huge obstacles, but we can overcome
them if we rely on God. We are well equipped to win the battle. If
we are strong and courageous.
Num 13:29 The Amalekites dwell in the land of the south, and
the Hittites, and the Jebusites, and the Amorites dwell in the mountains.
And the Canaanites dwell by the sea and by the coast of Jordan.
Notice the attitude of Caleb, he could not see the problem, he had strength and courage to go forward. He wanted the promised land. He knew all things were possible with God. Do we have this attitude towards eternal life. Do we rely on God to help us overcome the obstacles in our paths. Num 13:30 And Caleb stilled the people before Moses and said,
Let us go up at once and possess it. For we are well able to overcome it.
Even though Caleb spoke out in faith and strength, the others were weak. It was all too hard for them. They just gave up and said the inhabitants were too strong for them. They had no belief in God, they lacked faith, Joshua and Caleb did not. Today we have satan and his spiritual cohorts to deal with. They are big strong and powerful.{just as the Anakim were to the Israelites.} But if we rely on God for strength and courage, we can overcome his influences. Resist the devil and he will flee from us. The Israelite leaders had a different attitude, they couldn’t see God in the picture at all, they left Him out of it. Num 13:31 But the men that went up with him said, We are not
able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.
The leaders of Israel did their best to discourage the Israelites from
entering the promised land. They only saw the physical, and ignored
the powers of God and His ability to help them.
Today we have people like that they are wondering stars who feast among us. They do their best to turn us away from eternal life. They sneak into the church and try to take us away from our calling, watering down the truth, and preaching lies. Notice Jude 11-13 Jud 1:11 Woe to them! For they went the way of Cain, and gave
themselves up to the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying
of Korah.
Num 13:32 And they brought up an evil report of the land which
they had searched to the sons of Israel, saying, The land through which
we have gone to search it, is a land that eats up those who live in it.
And all the people whom we saw in it were men of stature.
The size of the sons of Anak, the giants worried the leaders.
Today, could we have a bigger or worse or more fierce enemy than santan
and his cohorts. Without God we would not be able to do anything,
but if we rely on God we can do anything.
The scouts exaggerated the difficulties, that they had to overcome,
for example the sons of Anak were 8 foot tall not 80 feet.
Num 13:33 And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, of the giants. And we were in our own sight like grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight. The leaders evil report was contagious and all the Israelites murmured against Moses and Aaron. Are we any different today, what has happened to the memory of Mr. Armstrong, his sermons were not allowed to be played in church services. etc. etc. all because when the church was led into error everyone turned it all around and blamed a man who had nothing to do with all this rejection of Gods law and not only that Mr. Armstrong had been dead for about 10 years, but all the people murmured against Gods chosen servant Mr. Armstrong. Num 14:1 And all the congregation lifted up their voice and
cried. And the people wept that night.
Then they blamed God and wanted to return to slavery in Egypt. This is how our thinking can be warped today if we do not listen to the truth, believe God and put our trust in Him. Num 14:3 And why has Jehovah brought us into this land to fall
by the sword, so that our wives and our sons should be a prey? Would it
not be better for us to return to Egypt?
They wanted to do away with the leaders appointed by God, just as today the church wants to rid any memory of Mr. Armstrong, and no doubt get rid of us too, but God is in charge, we will keep the memory of Mr. Armstrong alive, and God choses who will be the physical leaders of the church, not man. Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Caleb tried to change the peoples minds and show them that the promised land could easily be taken Num 14:5 And Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all
the assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel.
Num 14:7 And they spoke to all the company of the sons of Israel
saying, The land which we passed through to search is an exceedingly good
land.
If the Lord delights in us, we can enter the land. Today is no different, if we are to receive eternal life, we must please God. Num 14:8 If Jehovah delights in us, then He will bring us into
this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey.
Today we must be chosen to do this, we must believe God, love the truth, obey God and have faith. There was no need for them to fear the giants. God was with them. Num 14:9 Only do not rebel against Jehovah, neither fear the
people of the land. For they are bread for us. Their protection has moved
from them, and Jehovah is with us. Do not fear them.
Today why fear man or the spiritual wickedness in high places. Rom 8:31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is
for us, who can be against us?
The Israelites just would not listen, they had been shown miracles, and yet too soon did they forget and prefer to return to slavery than enter the promised land. Not only that but they wanted to kill Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Caleb. Num 14:10 But all the congregation said to stone them with
stones. And the glory of Jehovah appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation
before all the sons of Israel.
Today the church is no different, a great deal of the members chose to reject God and the commandments, and later on most refuse to believe God, and this new knowledge. Why didn't the Israelites want to go in. Because they did not believe God. Num 14:11 And Jehovah said to Moses, How long will this people
provoke Me? And how long will it be before they believe Me, for all the
signs which I have shown among them?
In fact if we do not believe God we will not enter into the promised land. Which for us is eternal life. Heb 3:17 But with whom was He grieved forty years? Was it not
with those who had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness?
Again it is the same today, very few, if any will believe the new knowledge restored to the church, which is the knowledge of eternal life. The rebellious Israelites upset God greatly Num 14:22 Because all those men who have seen My glory and
My miracles which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted
Me now these ten times, and have not listened to My voice,
Notice that Caleb had another spirit. Both Joshua and Caleb wanted the
promised land.
3RD DAY OF THE FEAST Once again today we will recap on what we have learned so far, what does the feast picture, that the Israelites had to dwell in booths for 40 years in the wilderness. These following verses sum it up Lev 23:42 You shall live in booths seven days. All that are
born Israelites shall live in booths,
Lev 23:41 And you shall keep it a feast to Jehovah seven days
in the year. It shall be a statute forever in your generations. You shall
keep it in the seventh month.
We must know the new knowledge about the Father and Christ, we must know and keep the correct date of the Passover, We have shown the parallel between the crossing of the Red Sea and the raising of Christ. We then looked at how the Israelites rejected the fountain of living waters which is the Father and the holy spirit. Then we saw how the Israelites rejected the promised land. We must keep in mind during the feast that we are the modern day Israelites. All these things must be applied to ourselves. Today we will look into the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness and the fact that the Israelites dwelt in booths during that time. The feast pictures this time, when the Israelites dwelt in booths. Let’s look at the reasons for this, and parallel it with today. Lev 23:43 so that your generations may know that I made the
sons of Israel live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt.
I am Jehovah your God.
Booths are temporary and so is the receiving of the earnest of the spirit it is a testing time. Just as this was a time of testing for the Israelites, so it is for us. Deu 8:2 And you shall remember all the way which Jehovah your
God led you these forty years in the wilderness in order to humble you,
to prove you, to know what is in your heart, whether you would keep His
commandments or not.
Num 32:8 So your fathers did when I sent them from Kadesh-barnea
to see the land.
Because of disobedience they could not see the land. Num 32:11 Surely, none of the men that came up out of Egypt,
from twenty years old and up, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham,
to Isaac, and to Jacob, because they have not fully followed Me,
Today we must accept the new knowledge in the church which leads to eternal life. There will be people who will come into the church and try to discourage us, they will try to turn us away from the truth. Let’s be forewarned against the modern day spies with the evil report of eternal life. They will be against the modern day physical leaders of the church, just as they constantly murmured and rebelled against Moses. When we took the knowledge of the truth to the church the ministry did their best to discourage us, but they could not. We clearly stated time and again to show us by the scriptures where we were wrong and they could not do it. 2Pe 2:1 But there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who secretly will bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, bringing on themselves swift destruction. One of the end time truths being restored is who God is. 2Pe 2:2 And many will follow their pernicious ways, and because of them the way of truth will be evil spoken of. Notice the way of truth…..we must love the truth, we must be whole hearted. Joshua and Caleb followed God wholly. Joshua and Caleb loved the promised land, they could not see any problem with it, certainly they knew about the giants, but they also knew that if God was with them, they were capable of entering and taking the land. Num 32:12 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh, the Kenizzite,
and Joshua the son of Nun, for they have fully followed Jehovah.
Because of disbelief they could not enter. They did not have the heart to believe God, love the promised land, or obey God. Today we must follow God wholly, with all our might, with all our heart. This is the way to eternal life. Mar 12:33 And to love Him with all the heart, and with all
the understanding, and with all the soul, and with all the strength, and
to love the neighbor as himself, is more than all the burnt offerings and
sacrifices.
Psa 119:2 Blessed are they who keep His testimonies, and who
seek Him with all the heart.
Rev 14:4 These are those who were not defiled with women; for
they are virgins. These are those who follow the Lamb wherever He goes.
These were redeemed from among men, as a firstfruit to God and to the Lamb.
Unfortunately we see those in the end time church who do not follow God with their whole heart. We see the lukewarm ones who have their mind on the material things of this world, and not on God. Lets look at ourselves and see, do we discuss God on the Sabbath, or do we simply talk about the weather, or some other gossip. Notice that in the end time church exists the attitude of the ancient Israelites. Also notice that many in the Laodicean church are not whole hearted. We are the modern day Israelites and all that was at fault with the ancient Israelites is alive and living in us today and we need to know that and accept that and apply it to us today, that is why these accounts are written because we must apply them to us, learn from their mistakes and get these wrong ways out of our lives. Rev 3:15 I know your works, that you
are neither cold nor hot. I would that you were cold or hot.
Because the Israelites rejected the promised land God caused them to die during the 40 years in the wilderness. They murmured against God. Num 14:27 How long shall I bear with this evil congregation,
which murmurs against Me? I have heard the murmurings of the sons of Israel
which they murmur against Me.
Do we murmur today about our church leaders or about God. I think
it is disgraceful how many in the church, murmured against Mr. Armstrong,
and how he is treated as nothing by most in the church today. What
a disgrace.
If people want to tarnish the memory of Mr. Armstrong or talk about us, please have the ticker to do it to our faces . This attitude will not be tolerated by us. If anyone disagrees with who God puts in charge of His church, then they are out of step with God, and those people need to take a long hard look at themselves and change. Notice the warning by Paul about murmuring and other sins which Israel were guilty of during the 40 years of wondering. Notice especially the words of chapter 10 v 11 they are for examples and admonition for the people living in the last days. 1Co 10:1 And, brothers, I do not want you to be ignorant that
all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea.
The children of the Israelites went into the promised land. Notice the Israelites despised the promised land, today many despise the truth. Num 14:31 But your little ones, which you said should be a
prey, I will bring them in and they shall know the land which you have
despised.
There is always a penalty for disobedience, here we see the children had to pay for their parents mistakes, this no doubt was to ensure that they did not make the same mistakes. The children of the Israelites had to bear the whoredoms. Num 14:33 And your sons shall feed in the wilderness forty
years and bear your fornications, until your dead bodies have wasted in
the wilderness.
The Israelites were an evil congregation Num 14:35 I Jehovah have spoken; I will surely do it to all
this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. They shall
be destroyed in this wilderness, and there they shall die.
The original spies died of the plague Num 14:36 And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land,
who returned and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing
up an evil report upon the land,
Why did they have to remember the way which God led them, for 40 years? To humble them,to prove them to know what was in their hearts and to see if they would keep the commandments. These are exactly the same requirements that God requires of us in the spiritual wilderness. Once we are baptised {parallel with the Red Sea crossing} we wander for a period of time in the spiritual wilderness, during this time, we are tested to see what is in our hearts. Deu 8:2 And you shall remember all the way which Jehovah your God led you these forty years in the wilderness in order to humble you, to prove you, to know what is in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. Jas 4:6 But He gives more grace. Therefore He says, God resists
the proud, but He gives grace to the humble.
1Pe 1:22 Purifying your souls in the obedience of the truth through the Spirit to unfeigned love of the brothers, love one another fervently out of a pure heart, Rev 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints. Here are the
ones who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.
Jos 5:5 For all the people who came out were circumcised. But
all the people born in the wilderness by the wayside, as they came forth
out of Egypt, had not been circumcised.
When Caleb spied out the land he brought back word as it was in his heart. Jos 14:7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of Jehovah
sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land. And I brought him word
again as it was in my heart.
Caleb loved the promised land, he wanted it, yes he saw the obstacles that were there, but he knew that if he relied on God he could easily overcome them. What about today….do we have this heart. Lets not be like these gentiles Eph 4:18 having the understanding darkened, being alienated
from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of
the blindness of their heart.
Guard against these things, this was the heart of the Israelites, is it in us today. Heb 3:12 Take heed, brothers, lest there be in any of you an
evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
Lets be like Joshua and Caleb Eph 6:6 not with eye-service, as men-pleasers, but as the servants
of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart,
Caleb wholly followed the Lord. Jos 14:8 But my brothers that went up with me made the heart
of the people melt; yet I fully followed Jehovah my God.
Caleb in great shape at 85 years old. Jos 14:11 As yet I am as strong today as I was in the day that
Moses sent me. As my strength was then, even so is my strength now, for
war, both to go out and to come in.
Heb 3:8 do not harden your hearts, as in the provocation, in
the day of temptation in the wilderness,
The Israelites did not have the type of heart God wanted. They did not know Gods ways. We must know God and the new knowledge we need to have a desire to learn. We need to love God, know about Him and Christ, love the truth and obey God. Heb 3:10 Therefore I was grieved with that generation and said,
They always err in their heart, and they have not known My ways.
Heb 3:11 So I swore in My wrath, They shall not enter into
My rest."
The new knowledge teaches us about God, it shows us who the Father is and who Christ is, we must love this knowledge and desire it, otherwise we are rejecting God. Look at this warning, do not have an evil heart of unbelief departing from the living God. This warning is for us today, we are the ones waiting to enter the promised land, NOW in the form of accepting the new knowledge of eternal life. Heb 3:12 Take heed, brothers, lest there be in any of you an
evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
When Nehemiah learned that the Israelites were required to build booths, they did so with great gladness Neh 8:14 And they found written in the Law which Jehovah had
commanded by Moses, that the sons of Israel should dwell in booths in the
feast of the seventh month,
Notice where the people built the booths Neh 8:16 And the people went out and brought in, and made themselves
booths, each one upon his roof, and in their courts, and in the courts
of the house of God, and in the street of the Water Gate, and in the street
of the Gate of Ephraim.
Notice that they sat under their booths, it means just that not actually living in them, but spending parts of the day in the booth, today we can erect one in our units at the feast and spend some of the day inside the booth, being mindful during this time that the Israelites lived in the booths 40 years. The word dwell in booths, can mean to sit in the booth and for us today this makes sense. We cannot take the tree branches today as this could be against the law in some cases, but we could erect a temporary shelter inside our hotel room or unit. This could be a two man tent, or something similar, this is temporary, we can spend some part of each day sitting inside this booth. This would be proper for the feast and is obeying the scriptures. This also enables us to keep the Last Great Day correctly, because, we only dwell or sit in the booths for 7 days, we do not sit in our booth on the Last Great Day, so to observe this correctly we simply dismantle our booth before sunset at the end of the feast, before the Last Great Day starts. Notice that the people sat in their booths they did not
live in them during the feast
Notice that we do not sit in our booth on the Last Great Day. We are commanded to dwell in booths for 7 days, it is only for the duration of the feast. Lev 23:42 You shall live in booths seven days. All that are
born Israelites shall live in booths,
The last great day is a separate holy day from the feast of tabernacles. The Feast lasts for 7 days then is a solemn assembly, for the Last Great Day. Lev 23:36 Seven days you shall offer a fire offering to Jehovah.
On the eighth day shall be a holy convocation to you. And you shall offer
a fire offering to Jehovah. It is a solemn assembly. And you shall do no
work of labor.
Notice that during the feast the book of the law was read Neh 8:18 Also day by day, from the first day until the last day, he read in the Book of the Law of God. And they kept the feast seven days, and on the eighth was an assembly, according to the Law. Every 7th year the book of Deuteronomy is to be read at the feast. This is done for some great reasons. So the people can hear, learn and fear the Lord and to do all the words of the law. And so that their children will hear,and learn to fear the Lord as long as they live in the promised land. We do not know which is the 7th year and we love the book of the law so we will read the entire book of Deuteronomy every feast. Deu 31:10 And Moses commanded them, saying: At the end of seven
years, at the set time of the year of release, in the Feast of Tabernacles,
The forty years of wandering has many lessons for us to learn, we need
to look into these lessons and apply them to ourselves as we journey through
our spiritual wilderness before we are offered eternal life. To gain
eternal life, we must believe God, fear Him, love the truth and be prepared
to step out with strength and courage. We need to have the heart
and actions of Joshua and Caleb.
4TH DAY OF THE FEAST Lets recap on what we have learned so far, the feast pictures the fact that the Israelites dwelt in booths for 40 years in the wilderness Lev 23:42 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are
Israelites born shall dwell in booths:
Notice some of the reasons the Israelites dwelt in booths Deu 8:2 And you shall remember all the way which Jehovah your God led you these forty years in the wilderness in order to humble you, to prove you, to know what is in your heart, whether you would keep His commandments or not. We saw that to get Eternal Life, we had to know the Father and Christ,
know the new knowledge about them which is being restored in the end time
church.
Today we will look at what Christ preached about at the Feast. He pointed people to the Father, and obedience to Him. Jesus told them they did not know the Father….we must know the Father. Jesus preached in the midst of the Feast which would be today most probably, since today is the middle of the feast. Joh 7:14 Now about the middle of the feast, Jesus went up into
the temple and taught.
Understand that some of the new knowledge that is required for eternal life is to know the Father and Jesus Christ. Joh 17:3 And this is life eternal, that
they might know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have
sent.
Lets notice the words of Christ during the feast as recorded in the book of John Jesus was in Galilee because the Jews wanted to kill Him Joh 7:1 After these things Jesus walked in Galilee, for He
did not desire to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.
His own family did not believe Him Joh 7:5 For His brothers did not believe
in Him.
The world loved His brothers because they were of the world. Jesus was not. Jesus told the world of their evil ways. Joh 7:7 The world cannot hate you, but
it hates Me because I testify of it, that its works are evil.
Jesus went up secretly because of the plots on His life, He was not tempting God and did His best to keep Himself safe until the appointed time of His death. Joh 7:8 You go up to this feast; I am
not yet going up to this feast; for My time is not yet fulfilled.
Christ remained in Galilee until His brethren had left. Then He went to the feast in secret. He did this so as not to tempt the Lord. Mat 4:6 And he said to Him, If you are
the Son of God, cast yourself down. For it is written, "He shall give His
angels charge concerning You, and in their hands they shall bear You up,
lest at any time You dash Your foot against a stone."
Joh 7:9 And having said these things to them, He remained in
Galilee.
The Jews sought Him at the Feast, and no one spoke about Him openly for fear of the Jews. It was obvious that it was Christs custom to go to the Feast for its entirety, because the Jews were looking for Him there. He was late going up this one time because of the plots on His life. Joh 7:11 Then the Jews sought Him at the feast and said, Where
is He?
Christ teaches about the 4th day of the Feast, which is about the middle. Joh 7:14 Now about the middle of the feast, Jesus went up into the temple and taught. Jesus did not attend their colleges. Joh 7:15 And the Jews marveled, saying, How does this man know
letters, not being taught?
Jesus said that He was teaching the doctrine of the Father Joh 7:16 Jesus answered them and said, My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me. Jesus gave the glory to the Father, the words He was speaking were those of the Father If we obey God we will know the truth, if it is of God or man. Notice the key that Christ gives is obedience. If we obey we will know the doctrine. Joh 7:17 If anyone desires to do His
will, he shall know of the doctrine, whether it is of God, or I speak from
Myself.
If we do not speak the truth, and the words of God, we seek our own glory. But if we glorify God, we will be righteous. Joh 7:18 He who speaks of himself seeks
his own glory, but he who seeks the glory of Him who sent Him is true,
and no unrighteousness is in Him.
Because Christ said He was the Son of God they wanted to kill Him. The Jews denied their plot to kill Christ. Joh 7:20 The crowd answered and said, You have a demon! Who
seeks to kill you?
This idea of Christ appearing and disappearing was of Jewish thought and not biblical. Joh 7:27 However, we know this one, from where he is; but when
Christ comes, no one knows from where He is.
They knew Christs family and where He lived, but they did not know the Father They did not know the ONE TRUE GOD Joh 7:28 Then Jesus cried in the temple
as He taught, saying, You both know Me, and
you know from where I come. And I have not come of Myself, but He who sent
Me is true, whom you do not know.
Christ explained that He was from the Father. Joh 7:29 But I know Him, for I am from
Him, and He has sent Me.
Today we must know the new knowledge of Christ and the Father. Christ has not always existed, he was the firstborn of all creation. Col 1:15 who is the image of the invisible God, the First-born
of all creation.
1Jn 1:1 That which was from the beginning, which we have heard,
which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon, and our hands
have handled, concerning the Word of Life,
The Father has existed for eternity He alone has existed for eternity. He is the one true God, that means that He is the only one who has existed for eternity. The following scriptures prove that very fact. Isa 57:15 For so says the high and lofty One who inhabits eternity;
whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, even with the contrite
and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the
heart of the contrite ones.
Isa 45:21 Declare and bring near; yea, let them take counsel
together. Who has declared this of old? Who has told it from then? Is it
not I, Jehovah? And there is no other God besides Me; a just God and a
Savior; there is none besides Me.
Jer 10:10 But Jehovah is the true God, He is the living God,
and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth shall tremble, and the
nations shall not be able to stand His fury.
1Jn 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and He has
given us an understanding so that we may know Him who is true. And we are
in Him that is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and
the everlasting life.
1Ti 6:16 who alone has immortality, dwelling in light which
cannot be approached, whom no one of men have seen, nor can see; to whom
be honor and power everlasting. Amen.
Mar 12:32 And the scribe said to Him, Right, Teacher, according
to truth You have spoken, that God is one, and there is no other besides
Him.
This is new knowledge for the end time church, it must be believed and loved, this is the knowledge that Christ will build His church on. It is the rock of knowledge, or foundation on which the church will be built. Jesus was born of the Father before creation…. If we have a son does anyone call him our brother. No. Once he is born, he is then your son. Christ was born of the Father before creation, He was the Son then and still is the Son now. Mat 16:16 And Simon Peter answered and
said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.
Joh 7:30 Then they sought to seize Him, but no one laid a hand
on Him, because His hour had not yet come.
Jesus told them He would only be with them for a little while longer and then He would be resurrected and raised. Joh 7:33 Then Jesus said to them, Yet a little while I am with you, and then I go to Him who sent Me. Christ told them He could not be found. Joh 7:34 You shall seek Me and shall
not find Me. And where I am, you cannot come.
The Jews had no idea of His resurrection and raising, and that He would sit on the right hand of the Father. Joh 7:35 Then the Jews said among themselves, Where is he about
to go that we shall not find him? Is he about to go to the Dispersion of
the Greeks, and to teach the Greeks?
Christ spoke about the Father during this day of the Feast, we must
know Him and Christ if we are to gain eternal life.
1Co 8:6 but there is to us only one God, the Father, of whom
are all things, and we in Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom
are all things, and we by Him.
Isa 46:9 Remember former things from forever; for I am God, and no other is God, even none like Me, Isa 45:5 I am Jehovah, and there is none else, no God besides
Me; I clothed you, though you have not known Me;
We must love the new knowledge of the Father and Christ, we have not
known who they are before this. That is because this knowledge
is only being revealed in the end time church, it has not been available
till now. Lets love these new truths brethren, lets believe them,
and obey them.
5TH DAY OF THE FEAST Again let us recap on what we have learned, the Feast of tabernacles,
pictures the time that God had the Israelites live in booths for 40 years
in the wilderness.
Lev 23:34 Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, The fifteenth
day of this seventh month shall be the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days
to Jehovah.
We have learned of the new knowledge about the Father and Christ, we
have seen the correct day of the Passover, and have seen we must keep it
on the correct day.
The time spent in slavery should be on our mind every Sabbath, it is a reminder of this time, we need to remember what we were before God so mercifully brought us out of the land of bondage. Notice the following scripture and that we are to remember these days on the Sabbath. Deu 5:14 But the seventh day shall be the sabbath of Jehovah
your God. In it you shall not do any work, you, nor your son, nor your
daughter, nor your manservant, nor your maidservant, nor your ox, nor your
ass, nor any of your cattle, nor your stranger inside your gates, so that
your manservant and your maidservant may rest like yourself.
Deut. 32 v 1-44 is the song of Moses it needs to be learned by modern day Israel in the end time. Today we will look at Another spirit, why did Joshua and Caleb
qualify to enter into the promised land.
Today lets look at having a different spirit. Num 14:24 But My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and has followed Me fully, I will bring him into the land into which he went. And his seed shall possess it. Deu 34:9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him. And the sons of Israel listened to him, and did as Jehovah commanded Moses. Num 32:11 Surely, none of the men that came up out of Egypt,
from twenty years old and up, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham,
to Isaac, and to Jacob, because they have not fully followed Me,
Num 14:6 And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh,
of those that searched the land, tore their clothes.
They loved the promised land, they spoke highly of it. It was exceedingly good. Num 14:7 And they spoke to all the company of the sons of Israel saying, The land which we passed through to search is an exceedingly good land. Notice the confidence of Joshua and Caleb, they had no doubt that they
could inhabit the land, if God delighted in them. God will bring us into
this land, God will give it to us, notice that they gave all the credit
to God. It was never something they could have done on their own.
God was always in the picture with these two.
Num 14:8 If Jehovah delights in us, then He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land which flows with milk and honey. Again Joshua and Caleb are not worried by the size or strength of the
people of the land. If God was for them, what was their worry.
Don’t rebel, Don’t fear them, they are defenceless, the Lord is with us,
do not fear them.
This is how we must be today. As we hear the new knowledge of eternal life, it may scare us. We may be worried and scared to leave the old beliefs behind, but if we trust in God and believe Him, the clouds of doubt will soon blow away. The new knowledge may appear too big for us to handle, too hard too difficult, but just like Joshua and Caleb, if we look past the obstacles, if we trust in God then we will be able to accept the truth. We have to love the new truth, just as they loved the promised land. Num 14:9 Only do not rebel against Jehovah, neither fear the people of the land. For they are bread for us. Their protection has moved from them, and Jehovah is with us. Do not fear them. Because of Joshua’s obedience and love of the promised land, and his willingness to rely on God and believe God, he was given responsibilities of leading Israel. Notice Joshua had the spirit. Num 27:17 who may go out before them, and who may go in before
them, and who may lead them out, and who may bring them in, so that the
congregation of Jehovah may not be as sheep which have no shepherd.
Joshua and Caleb were the only ones out of all the Israelites over 20 years old, who entered the promised land……why they followed the Lord wholly Num 32:11 Surely, none of the men that came up out of Egypt,
from twenty years old and up, shall see the land which I swore to Abraham,
to Isaac, and to Jacob, because they have not fully followed Me,
Here is a warning for us in the end time church. We must be prepared to follow the Lord wholly. Unfortunately the last era of Gods church is only a half hearted bunch. We see that we are luke warm. Rev 3:16 So because you are lukewarm,
and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.
If we are not diligent to be whole hearted, what will happen, the same as the Israelites, they did not enter the promised land……we will miss out on eternal life…..because Christ says He will spue us out of His mouth. Don’t just sit back and think we will easily roll on into the kingdom from here. Ok we have come through troubles in the church, and we chose to stick with Gods laws, when the church was led into doing away with the Sabbath and the holy days. We have now been able to see the new knowledge that leads to eternal life. But if we think we can just cruise on in from here on in……think again…. Satan roams around seeking those whom he may devour. We must be on our guard, we must be whole hearted, we must put eternal life high on our priority list and God must be No. 1 and we must be loving this new truth, believe God, have faith and have courage. Let’s not under estimate our enemy, when the church brings forth the end time knowledge of God and Christ…..satan is waiting to devour and do away with this knowledge. Rev 12:4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven,
and cast them onto the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman being
about to bear, so that when she bears he might devour her child.
We must be very diligent to get rid of this luke warm attitude if it is in us today. We must love the truth, believe God, trust in God, be faithfull, work hard on ourselves, and our attitudes, and rid ourselves of this half hearted approach to the truth, eternal life is at stake. Deu 1:38 Joshua the son of Nun, who stands before you, he shall
go in there. Make him strong, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it.
Notice the responsibility given to Joshua, he would cause Israel to inherit the promised land. He was going to lead them in, he set the correct examples of following God with his whole heart. These are the same qualities we need today. Are we capable of leading others to the truth, can we be strong and courageous enough in the face of huge difficulties. Deu 31:7 And Moses called to Joshua and said to him in the
sight of all Israel, Be strong and of a good courage. For you must go with
this people to the land which Jehovah has sworn to their fathers to give
it to them, and you shall cause them to inherit it.
Here we see Moses telling Joshua that he must be strong and of good courage. Then we see the all important song of Moses which Israel must learn as a witness against them. Notice that the children of Israel were to learn it. The church must learn this song. THE SONG OF MOSES Deu 31:19 Now, therefore, write this song for you, and teach
it to the sons of Israel. Put it in their mouths, so that this song may
be a witness for Me against the sons of Israel.
Deu 32:1 Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; and hear, O
earth, the words of my mouth.
Joshua was full of the spirit Deu 34:9 And Joshua the son of Nun was full of the spirit of
wisdom, for Moses had laid his hands on him. And the sons of Israel listened
to him, and did as Jehovah commanded Moses.
Num 14:24 But My servant Caleb, because he had another spirit
with him, and has followed Me fully, I will bring him into the land into
which he went. And his seed shall possess it.
Joshua and Caleb had another spirit to the other leaders, they were obedient to God, loved the promised land, believed God, relied on God, had faith and trust in Him, they knew they could easily take the promised land if God was with them. Lets go forward a little in our account to just before the time of the death of Joshua to recap on the type of man he was. This is 25 years after they entered the promised land and Joshua is 110 years old Jos 23:6 And be very courageous to keep and to do all that
is written in the book of the Law of Moses, so that you do not turn aside
from it to the right or to the left;
Jos 23:9 For Jehovah has driven out from before you great and
strong nations. But as for you, no one has been able to stand before you
to this day.
Notice Joshua reminds them to love God. Jos 23:11 And take good heed to yourselves that you love Jehovah
your God.
Jos 23:14 And behold, today I am going the way of all the earth.
And you know in all your heart and in all your souls that not one thing
has failed of all the good things which Jehovah your God spoke concerning
you. All have come to pass to you. Not one thing of it has failed.
Get rid of foreign Gods and serve God. Jos 24:14 Now, then, fear Jehovah, and serve Him in sincerity
and truth. And put away the gods which your fathers served on the other
side of the flood, and in Egypt, and serve Jehovah.
God will not let the rebellious go unpunished. Jos 24:20 If you forsake Jehovah and serve strange gods, then
He will turn and do you harm, and destroy you after He has done you good.
Jos 24:24 And the people said to Joshua, We will serve Jehovah
our God, and His voice we will obey.
Caleb was 40 when he spied out the promised land. Jos 14:7 I was forty years old when Moses the servant of Jehovah
sent me from Kadesh-barnea to spy out the land. And I brought him word
again as it was in my heart.
Caleb was given the land Deu 1:36 except Caleb the son of Jephunneh; he shall see it, and to him I will give the land that he has trodden upon, and to his sons, because he has fully followed Jehovah. Caleb given Hebron Jos 14:12 Now therefore give me this mountain, whereof the
LORD spake in that day; for thou heardest in that day how the Anakims were
there, and that the cities were great and fenced: if so be the LORD will
be with me, then I shall be able to drive them out, as the LORD said.
6TH DAY OF THE FEAST Once again we will recap and remind ourselves of what these days picture.
The feast is a reminder of the time the Israelites dwelt in booths during
their time in the wilderness.
Lev 23:40 And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs
of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees,
and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the LORD your God
seven days.
We have learned that the Father is the one true God, and Christ is His
Son born before creation. We have seen that the Passover must be
kept on the correct day, we have seen the parallel between the crossing
of the Red Sea and the raising of Christ, We saw Israel’s rejection of
the Father the fountain of living waters and the holy spirit, we saw what
Christ spoke about during the feast, we saw Joshua and Caleb had another
spirit,
Today we look at the 40 years of wandering in the wilderness and how it is a parallel to the time when we are given the earnest of the spirit. We are given the earnest of the spirit at baptism, if we repent and meet Gods requirements. Once we have the earnest of the Spirit, we can begin to understand, obey, believe, and grow in knowledge and overcome ourselves. 2Pe 3:18 But grow in grace and in knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen. 1Co 11:31 For if we would judge ourselves, we would not be judged. 1Pe 1:21 those believing in God through Him, He who raised
Him up from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope might
be in God.
Eph 3:4 by which, when you read, you may understand my knowledge
in the mystery of Christ)
Act 5:32 And we are His witnesses of these things. And so also
is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey Him.
How well we do these things depends on how much we want to please God, how much we want to be different to the world, how much time and effort we are prepared to put in. If we want to win the race we have to be fit to compete. God let the Israelites wander for 40 years to test them to see what was in their hearts. Deu 8:2 And you shall remember all the way which Jehovah your
God led you these forty years in the wilderness in order to humble you,
to prove you, to know what is in your heart, whether you would keep His
commandments or not.
Once we receive the earnest of the spirit we then have to be proved,
without any doubt we will lack humility, before we come to the promised
land we, like the Israelites, are taken on a long and arduous journey,
God wants to be absolutely sure we are ready before He gives us the holy
spirit of power, which is eternal life inherent.
There is no turning back from eternal life, remember only those under 20 survived the 40 years in the wilderness, that made the oldest of them 60 at the time they entered the promised land. They had 40 years of testing, many of us have not been in the church that long. 2Co 1:22 And He has sealed us and having given the earnest
of the Spirit in our hearts.
Notice that we receive the earnest of the spirit when we believe God.
Even though the Israelites witnessed many miracles, they did not believe or love God. The earnest of the spirit is a down payment of what is yet to come. Eph 1:13 in whom also you, hearing the Word of Truth, the gospel
of our salvation, in whom also believing, you were sealed with the Holy
Spirit of promise,
Once the earnest of the holy spirit is given then we can grow and overcome and understand much more, without the earnest of the spirit our understanding is shallow, we need the earnest of the spirit to have a deeper understanding of Gods word. We can begin our Christian walk, we can understand the bible as God opens our mind to understand. We can obey, we have belief, we have faith, love, and we should show the fruits of the spirit. Gal 5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit is: love, joy, peace,
long-suffering, kindness, goodness, faith,
This growth can take many years until God offers the knowledge of eternal
life.
Act 11:15 And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on
them, as on us at the beginning.
The disciples were given the earnest of the spirit early up, at the beginning of their calling, Christ later promised that they would receive the holy spirit of power, in John Joh 20:22 And when He had said this,
He breathed on them and said to them, Receive
the Holy Spirit.
They did not receive the holy spirit of power, at this time, but they
had qualified at this time, else Christ would not have told them that they
were going to get it. They already had the earnest of the spirit
as shown in Acts 11 v 15, so there is no doubt that Christ was talking
about the spirit of power.
However the knowledge of eternal life was a mystery to them, they could
not understand these things.
It just wasn’t the time to understand some things, the holy spirit would bring things to mind after Christs death Joh 14:26 But the Comforter, the Holy
Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things
and bring all things to your remembrance, whatever I have said to you.
Mar 9:31 For He taught His disciples and said to them, The
Son of Man is delivered into the hands of men, and they shall kill him.
And after He is killed, He shall rise the third day.
Notice that the understanding was hidden from them, they did not have the Holy Spirit of power and therefore could not understand. Christ told them to remember these sayings and later when they received the Holy Spirit of power, these things would be brought to their remembrance. See John 14 v 26 below Joh 14:26 But the Comforter, the Holy
Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things
and bring all things to your remembrance, whatever I have said to you.
Notice again how Christ explained to them to let these things be remembered and the understanding would come later. Luk 9:43 And they were all amazed at the majesty of God. But
as all were marveling at all things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples,
They were unaware of His resurrection Joh 16:18 Therefore they said, What is
this that He says, A little while? We do not know what He is saying.
Once the disciples received the Holy Spirit of Power, the spirit brought to remembrance the things Christ taught them. Joh 12:16 But His disciples did not know these things at the
first. But when Jesus was glorified, then they remembered that these things
were written of Him, and that they had done these things to Him.
Joh 14:26 But the Comforter, the Holy
Spirit whom the Father will send in My name, He shall teach you all things
and bring all things to your remembrance, whatever I have said to you.
It could be quite a puzzle to understand why the disciples had the earnest of the spirit and yet did not understand. As we explained earlier, with the earnest of the spirit we can understand a good deal, but for the knowledge of eternal life, requires a further step, God must open our minds to greater understanding. This happens when God shows us the scriptures, if we have a desire to understand, grow, and believe what God shows us, He opens our mind to greater understanding. If we love the truth, if we believe the truth, obey, and desire to learn,
we must accept that what we once held as the truth is now replaced with
new knowledge of eternal life, which is being restored in the end time.
Then God will open our eyes and ears.
Luk 24:44 And He said to them, These
are the words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all
things must be fulfilled which were written in the Law of Moses and in
the Prophets and in the Psalms about Me.
Once God opens our understanding to the scriptures, then there is a
period of time until we receive the Holy Spirit of power, in the case of
the disciples it was the period from when God opened their minds to understanding,
till Pentecost.
For the Israelites it was the time they crossed the Jordan River and entered into the Promised Land which was a type of us receiving the Holy Spirit of power. That is why so many did not want it, it was all too hard, many are called, few are chosen. The giving of the Holy Spirit of power, is a very serious time in our spiritual life, and God takes the giving of His spirit very seriously. When we receive it we have eternal life inherent. The two phases of the spirit are very different, the first, the earnest
of the spirit, is the down payment, of eternal life, it is a deposit of
greater things yet to come.
The comparison is during the 40 years of wandering is the time of getting the earnest of the spirit, entering into the promised land is the getting of the holy spirit of power. Act 1:8 But you shall receive power, the Holy Spirit coming
upon you. And you shall be witnesses to Me both in Jerusalem and in all
Judea, and in Samaria, and to the end of the earth.
Many readers might think that the disciples first received the Holy Spirit at Pentecost, but the following verse shows that they already had the Holy Spirit and were to receive another comforter. Joh 14:16 And I will pray the Father,
and He shall give you another Comforter, so that He may be with you forever,
There is a huge difference in the spiritual understanding we receive with the earnest of the spirit compared to the Holy Spirit of power. The holy spirit of power or truth enables us to understand the things pertaining to eternal life. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO KNOW THESE TRUTHS WITHOUT GOD FIRST OPENING OUR MINDS TO UNDERSTANDING THE THINGS OF ETERNAL LIFE, AND AFTER WE ACCEPT THE TRUTH AND BELIEVE THE TRUTH WE ARE GIVEN THE HOLY SPIRIT OF POWER. The Israelites simply did not accept the truth and believe the truth, they just were not ready until they crossed the Jordan. The 40 years was to sift their hearts. It is no different for us today. Notice how God gives us understanding 1Jn 5:20 And we know that the Son of God has come, and He has
given us an understanding so that we may know Him who is true. And we are
in Him that is true, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God, and
the everlasting life.
2Ti 2:7 Consider what I say, and the Lord will give you understanding
in all things.
1Ti 2:4 Who will have all men to be saved, and to come to the knowledge of the truth. We must have a desire to learn, believe, and obey, then we will find the knowledge of God Pro 2:3 yea, if you cry after knowledge and lift up your voice
for understanding;
When we receive the truth we must also believe it. 1Th 2:13 And for this cause we thank God without ceasing, that
when you received the Word of hearing, of God, you welcomed it as the Word
of God, not as a word of men, but as it is, truly the Word of God, which
also effectually works in you who believe.
2Th 2:13 But we are bound to give thanks always to God for
you, brothers beloved of the Lord, because God has from the beginning chosen
you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the
truth,
We receive power when we have the Holy Spirit of power. Mic 3:8 But I am full of power by the Spirit of Jehovah, and justice, and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression, and to Israel his sin. 2Ti 1:7 For God has not given us the spirit of fear, but of
power and of love and of a sound mind.
Lets look at some of the things that are opened to our minds once we have the spirit of power. Unless we love this knowledge, accept it and believe it, we will not receive the spirit of power, just as the Israelites were not ready to cross the Jordan until they were willing to obey neither will we cross into eternal life inherent. Jos 24:31 And Israel served Jehovah all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, and who had known all the works of Jehovah that He had done for Israel. THE FATHER IS THE ONE TRUE GOD The knowledge of the Father and the Son is eternal life, we must know that there is one true God and that is the Father, He is the only one who has existed for all eternity. He is the self existent one, Jehovah. Jesus Christ has not always existed, He is from the beginning, He was born before creation. He is the firstborn Son of God. He is God but He has not existed for eternity. He is second in charge to the Father. Joh 17:3 And this is life eternal, that they might know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent. Jer 10:10 But Jehovah is the true God, He is the living God, and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth shall tremble, and the nations shall not be able to stand His fury. Mar 12:32 And the scribe said to Him, Right, Teacher, according to truth You have spoken, that God is one, and there is no other besides Him. 1Co 8:6 but there is to us only one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we by Him. 1Ti 2:5 For God is one, and there is one Mediator of God and
of men, the Man Christ Jesus,
Once we learn these truths God will show us many more things, like the correct day of the Passover, the correct meaning of the holy days and much much more. The prophets and righteous would not have been given certain knowledge because it was to be revealed to the disciples, until then it was not known. Mat 13:17 For truly I say to you that
many prophets and righteous men have desired to see those things which
you see, and have not seen them; and to hear what you hear, and have not
heard them.
This knowledge is to be restored in the end time church……all things
will be restored. This knowledge will eventually fill the whole earth.
It was known by the disciples, but lost since then, to be restored in the
end time
7TH DAY OF THE FEAST . Again for the last time we will recap what we have learned during this
feast.We have seen that the feast pictures the time the Israelites lived
in booths, for 40 years.
Lev 23:39 Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when
you have gathered in the fruit of the land, you shall keep a feast to Jehovah
seven days. On the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day
shall be a sabbath.
We learned the new knowledge about the Father and Christ, we have seen
the correct date of the Passover. We have seen the parallel between
the crossing of the Red Sea and the raising of Christ. We have learned
how the Israelites rejected the fountain of living waters God the Father
and the holy spirit. We have seen how the Israelites rejected the
promised land. We have seen the difference between the heart of Joshua
and Caleb and the other leaders of the Israelite Tribes, and the other
Israelites. We looked at what Christ himself spoke about during the
feast.
Now today is the last day of the feast. This means that we will take down our booths, before sunset, before the start of the holy day for the last great day. We are only required to sit in our booths for 7 days. Lev 23:41 And you shall keep it a feast to Jehovah seven days
in the year. It shall be a statute forever in your generations. You shall
keep it in the seventh month.
The parallel for us today pictures our temporary physical state as we wander in our spiritual wilderness during the time we are given the earnest of the spirit until we finally qualify to receive the holy spirit of power and have eternal life inherent. Again to have the holy spirit of power we must love the truth, believe it, obey it, and fear God. Perhaps some of you are thinking we have repeated what we have learned over and over, this is so that it will help you to remember the new truths we are learning WE HAVE NOT KNOWN WHAT THE HOLY DAYS PICTURE ……THIS IS NEW KNOWLEDGE BEING RESTORED IN THE LAST DAYS, if it were not important we would not teach it, it is vitally important that you understand these new teachings, if you don’t or you have any questions about anything we are teaching you, please come and ask us, and we will do our very best to answer your questions from the bible. Today we will look at why the Israelites rejected the holy spirit and God twice during this time. Firstly at Marah and secondly when they brought back an evil report of the promised land. Today we will look at why the Israelites failed. What was their attitudes. What was in their hearts and minds. Today we will learn from their mistakes to insure that we do not have the same attitudes, the same hearts and the same actions as the Israelites. REMEMBER THIS IS A PARALLEL FOR US TODAY REMEMBER THEY FAILED AND ALL PERISHED THEY DID NOT ENTER THE PROMISED LAND. Only those under 20 years of age , at the time the scouts spied out the promised land, entered in. Notice the following account only a short time after the crossing of the Red Sea. The people complained about a lack of food, we need to look at ourselves, do we complain or murmur or grumble about things, so did the Israelites, Exo 16:2 And the whole congregation of the sons of Israel murmured
against Moses and Aaron in the wilderness.
They complained about water. In fact they complained about many things, so we must guard against this in our lives. Exo 17:3 And the people thirsted there for water. And the people
murmured against Moses and said, Why is this, that You brought us up out
of Egypt, to kill us and our sons and our cattle with thirst?
The people were not righteous, they were stiffnecked. Their behaviour did not allow them to enter the promised land. They could not enter because of disbelief Heb 3:19 So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief. We can’t earn eternal life either, unless we believe God, we must also love God, and the truth, obey and fear God if we want eternal life. If the bible differs from our thoughts we must change to believe the bible. Deu 9:6 Therefore, understand that Jehovah your God does not
give you this good land, to possess it, for your righteousness. For you
are a stiff-necked people.
Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. The entire time from Egypt until they entered the promised land, the Israelites were rebellious. Deu 9:7 Remember, and do not forget, how you provoked Jehovah
your God to wrath in the wilderness. From the day you departed out of the
land of Egypt, until you came to this place, you have been rebellious against
Jehovah.
So we must be careful that we are not rebellious. Korah and others challenged the leadership of Moses, lets make sure we do not do that today. God decides who will be in charge of the church on the earth, not man. If we disagree with who God picks for certain leadership roles, then we are not in agreement with the Mighty One of Israel. Mr. Armstrong was the God appointed leader of the Philadelphian era of the church, many disagreed with his leadership and followed other leaders back to Egypt and back to slavery where they were quite happy to do away with Gods laws, Sabbath and Holy days. Num 14:4 And they said to one another, Let us make a leader,
and let us return to Egypt.
Act 7:39 to whom our fathers would not be obedient, but thrust
him away and turned back again to Egypt in their hearts,
People join churches that suit them, not the only church on earth that has the truth of God. There are now hundreds of churches that claim to be Gods church, this is a fallacy, there is ONE CHURCH that has the truth of God. Notice the following scripture is singular church not plural. Mat 16:18 And I also say to you that
you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of
hell shall not prevail against it.
It didn’t take the Israelites long to turn from God and to worship a false god of molten image. We must guard against false Gods Deu 9:12 And Jehovah said to me, Arise! Get down quickly from
here, for your people whom you have brought forth out of Egypt have corrupted.
They have quickly turned aside out of the way which I commanded them. They
have made them a molten image.
Notice the list of sins they committed. 1Co 10:5 But with many of them God was not well pleased, for they were scattered in the wilderness. Do not lust after evil things. 1Co 10:6 And these things were our examples, that we should
not be lusters after evil, as they also lusted.
Don’t be idolaters. 1Co 10:7 Nor should we be idolaters, even as some of them,
as it is written: "The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to
play."
Don’t commit fornication 1Co 10:8 Nor let us commit fornication, as some of them fornicated,
and twenty-three thousand fell in one day.
Don’t tempt Christ. 1Co 10:9 Nor let us tempt Christ, as some of them also tempted Him and were destroyed by serpents. Don’t complain 1Co 10:10 Nor murmur as some of them also murmured and were
destroyed by the destroyer.
These are for examples for us in these last days. 1Co 10:11 And all these things happened to them as examples;
and it is written for our warning on whom the ends of the world have come.
Don’t harden our hearts. Heb 3:8 do not harden your hearts, as in the provocation, in
the day of temptation in the wilderness,
We must know Gods ways. Heb 3:10 Therefore I was grieved with that generation and said,
They always err in their heart, and they have not known My ways.
We must have a believing honest heart. Gods rest is the promised land Heb 3:11 So I swore in My wrath, They shall not enter into
My rest."
Belief, we must believe the new truth, we must love it and believe it. We must believe God, we will not get eternal life if we do not believe God. Num 14:11 And Jehovah said to Moses, How long will this people
provoke Me? And how long will it be before they believe Me, for all the
signs which I have shown among them?
Keep away from evil and do not do it. Notice this is for the latter days Deu 31:29 For I know that after my death you will become utterly
corrupt, and turn aside from the way which I have commanded you. And evil
will happen to you in the latter end of the days, because you will do evil
in the sight of Jehovah, to provoke Him to anger through the work of your
hands.
Keep away from wickedness and do not be wicked Deu 9:18 And I fell down before Jehovah, as at the first, forty
days and forty nights. I neither ate bread nor drank water, because of
all your sins which you sinned in doing wickedly in the sight of Jehovah
to provoke Him to anger.
Do not have a lack of faith Deu 32:20 And He said, I will hide My face from them; I will
see what their end shall be. For they are a very perverse generation, sons
in whom is no faithfulness.
Do not have vanity in our lives again this is a warning for the end time. Deu 32:21 They have moved Me to jealousy with a no-god. They
have provoked Me to anger with their vanities. And I will move them to
jealousy with a no-people. I will provoke them to anger with a foolish
nation.
This account is only a summary of the many things the Israelites did that displeased God. Moses was constantly under attack by them, and God wanted to wipe them all out and start again with Moses sons. This account is for us for an example so that we do not foolishly follow their bad examples. The time in the wilderness for us spiritually is a testing time to see what is in our hearts and minds….how do we come up…..what does God think of us, we are in this testing time now so be diligent, believe God, love the truth, believe the truth, obey it and have a healthy fear of God. Surely we want to cross the Jordan and enter the promised land, which is for us the receiving of the Holy spirit of power, eternal life inherent. A reminder that we take down our booth before sunset as that will be
the end of the feast. We do not sit in our booth on the Last Great
Day, only during the feast.
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