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Resurrection: The Atheist Always Demanding Proof

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Gospel, Prophecy, Resurrection, Spring Feasts with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 16, 2022 by paulthepoke

The atheist, always wanting proof. The arguments are all the same. The Bible does not count as evidence so they say. Jesus is imaginary. The Bible is a fairy tale and just a book of stories. Religion is for the weak minded. Insert next cliché here…

You all spend a lot of time on “imaginary things” as you see it.

The atheist claims to have read the Bible. They usually studied the Bible at a liberal university and read it cover to cover of course. They took a class under a liberal, tenured professor. And they were brainwashed and told what to think.

Here is my challenge to the atheist. Sit down by yourself. Read. Comprehend… and think. Stop regurgitating what somebody told you. Be an independent thinker. Stop acting like the collective Borg.

As an introductory to Jesus, I recommend the book of 1 John. This will not take more than 10 minutes.

So you want proof…

Eye Witness Accounts

1 Corinthians 15:6-8 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.

In the passage above, there are 512 plus eyewitnesses to the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

John 20:11 But Mary was standing outside the tomb weeping; and so, as she wept, she stooped and looked into the tomb;

Luke 24:10 Now they were Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary the mother of James; also the other women with them were telling these things to the apostles.

Salome is included with this group in Mark 16:1 for a total of at least 4 women.

Luke 24:13-15 And behold, two of them were going that very day to a village named Emmaus, which was about seven miles from Jerusalem. And they were talking with each other about all these things which had taken place. While they were talking and discussing, Jesus Himself approached and began traveling with them.

Cleopas and friend are two other witnesses.

Matthew 27:54 Now the centurion, and those who were with him keeping guard over Jesus, when they saw the earthquake and the things that were happening, became very frightened and said, “Truly this was the Son of God!”

And to close out the list, a Roman atheist and his fellow guards. Seeing was believing for these boys.

But Jesus was not the only person resurrected. He was the first but there were others.

Matthew 27:52-53 The tombs were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised; and coming out of the tombs after His resurrection they entered the holy city and appeared to many.

The events took place during Passover. Jews were required per Mosaic Law to come to Jerusalem for the holiday. Tens of thousands of people would have been in the city visiting in addition to the population.

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The evidence provided in Scripture would stand in a court of law. Harvard Law Professor Simon Greenleaf wrote A Treatise on the Law of Evidence. The document is viewed as “the greatest single authority in the entire literature of legal procedure.” The United States judicial system functions on the rules of evidence established by Greenleaf.

Professor Greenleaf, an atheist, took up the issue of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The facts changed his mind.

Professor Greenleaf’s legal standard of proof is not the issue. The case for the resurrection of Jesus is legally tight. Who cares if the facts stand in a man-made court of law??? The issue is this…

DO YOU BELIEVE THE RECORD?

Your eternal destination is in the balance.

https://www.amazon.com/Paul-Lehr/e/B09W8FB77N

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Passover: The Sacrificial Lamb

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Gospel, Prophecy, Spring Feasts with tags , , , , , , , , , , on April 10, 2022 by paulthepoke

Exodus 12:5-6 Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male a year old. You may take it from the sheep or from the goats, and you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill their lambs at twilight.

The lamb is without blemish or tamim in the Hebrew. The lamb is complete or sound per Strong’s Concordance.

Multiple people bear witness to the fact Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God. The first example is a quote from John the Baptist in the Book of John. The identification of Christ as the Lamb of God took place in the Jordan River at the baptism of Jesus.

John 1:29 The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”

A day later, John the Baptist again identified Jesus as the Lamb of God.

John 1:36 and he looked at Jesus as he walked by and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God!”

While Philip was with the Ethiopian, he equated Jesus as the referenced lamb from the reading of Isaiah 53:7.

Acts 8:32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this: “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth.”

The Apostle Peter states the blood of Jesus is as a sinless lamb.

1 Peter 1:19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.

In these four cases above, Jesus is referred to as an ἀμνός/amnos in the Greek. A lamb with innocence and sacrificial considerations is the idea per Strong’s Concordance.

In the book of Revelation, John refers to Jesus as a lamb or ἀρνίον/arnion. This is a small, little, or diminutive lamb. This type of person has the purest of intentions. HELPs Word Studies indicates the essence of innocence or virgin like intentions. Twenty-nine times (29) Christ is labeled as an arnion only in the book of Revelation. The context is the throne room of Heaven in the presence of the Father, Spirit, millions of witnesses including apostles, elders, believers, martyrs, creatures, and angels.

Revelation 5:12 saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!”

Revelation 14:1 Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.

Revelation 17:14 They will make war on the Lamb, and the Lamb will conquer them, for he is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those with him are called and chosen and faithful.

Jesus Christ is the sacrificial Lamb of God as foreshadowed by Moses in Exodus 12.

https://www.amazon.com/Paul-Lehr/e/B09W8FB77N

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Preview: God’s Spring Appointed Holidays 5782/2022

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Gospel, Prophecy, Spring Feasts with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 3, 2022 by paulthepoke

There are seven God appointed holidays communicated through the Old Testament Law. The first three spring holidays were fulfilled on the appointed holiday by Jesus Himself. The names of the feasts are: Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits.

In the Hebrew year 5782 or the Gregorian calendar year of 2022, the holidays occur as follows. Passover essentially begins at sunset on Friday, Nisan 14th (Hebrew calendar) or April 15th on a western calendar. The first day of Unleavened Bread is the next day at sunset on Saturday, Nisan 15th or April 16th. Lastly, the feast of First Fruits starts at sunset on Sunday, Nisan 16th or April 17th. The holidays culminate and end at sunset on Saturday, April 23rd. These are the mathematically calculated dates for our 21st century calendars.

According to God’s directions, the new moon has yet to be observed. As of this posting, morning of April 3rd, two witnesses have not seen the sliver of the new moon. It is likely to be seen this evening or the next. Adding to the confusion, it was cloudy and overcast in Jerusalem last evening. Nobody was able to look for the new moon because of cloud cover. At any rate, this will push back the date of the Spring Feasts a couple of days past the dates mentioned above.

As usual, there is not consensus on these dates within various studies of Judaism and Jewish Messianic believers in Yeshua or Jesus Christ. Granted, all of these folks are making good faith efforts to be accurate. Each group has good reason(s) for the dates selected. They are not all idiots. When in doubt, search for the new moon and full moon. Humanity struggles to keep time as God has directed. No one knows the day or the hour…

Creation of Time: The Calendar

The first of God’s holidays is Passover or Pesach in the Hebrew. The holiday begins on the 14th day of the Hebrew month Nisan (March or April on a Gregorian calendar). There is a play on words in the original Hebrew. A “pesach” is an unblemished lamb which was required for the sacrifice. After the “pesach” was sacrificed, the blood was to be smeared on the wooden posts of the house. When God saw the blood on the door posts, He passed over or “pasach” and the house was spared judgment.

The original directions for the Passover were given to Moses and Aaron in Egypt. The statute and happenings are noted in Exodus 12. God defines the purpose of the holiday to Israel. 

Exodus 12:26-27a “And when your children say to you, ‘What does this rite mean to you?’ you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the LORD who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’”

~

The second of God’s holidays is Unleavened Bread or Chag haMatazt in the Hebrew. The holiday begins on the 15th of Nisan and runs for seven days.

The directions of Unleavened Bread are noted in Exodus 12:15-20. The focus of the week is to live a life without leaven, the symbol for sin. Leaven is not to be in the house. Leaven products are not to be consumed. Bread without yeast, matzah, is to be eaten.

~

The third of God’s holidays is First Fruits or Reshit Katzir in the Hebrew. The one day holiday begins on the day after the Sabbath or Sunday on our calendar.

The directions for First Fruits are noted in Leviticus 23:9-14. The priest is to make a barley offering of the first portion of the harvest to the Lord. The priest intervenes on behalf of the people. The reality of the holiday for the people of Israel is this. The people bring their grain sheaf to the priest. They are to sacrifice a lamb without blemish. The offering is also to be presented with bread and wine.

https://www.amazon.com/Paul-Lehr/e/B09W8FB77N

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There Shall Be Seven Weeks: Feasts (Passover/Unleavened Bread)

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Angels, Spring Feasts with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on June 20, 2021 by paulthepoke

Daniel 9:25b …there shall be seven weeks…

The context of this series of posts is the course of the Jewish people for the initial 49 years of the 483 year period communicated from the angel Gabriel to the prophet Daniel. The city of Jerusalem has been rebuilt post exile. These events are covered in Nehemiah 8-13. Israel is returning to God’s Law. The focus has shifted to God’s appointed holidays. The monthly offering of the Temple service was covered last week. This week, Nehemiah reminds the Jewish people of God’s appointments or the feasts.

Nehemiah 10:33 …the appointed feasts…

There are seven God appointed holidays communicated through the Old Testament Law. They are Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, Pentecost, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles.

The first three spring holidays were fulfilled on the appointed holiday by Jesus Himself. The names of the feasts covered today are: Passover and Unleavened Bread.

The first of God’s holidays is Passover or Pesach in the Hebrew. The holiday begins on the 14th day of the Hebrew month Nisan (March or April on a Gregorian calendar). There is a play on words in the original Hebrew. A “pesach” is an unblemished lamb which was required for the sacrifice. After the “pesach” was sacrificed, the blood was to be smeared on the wooden posts of the house. When God saw the blood on the door posts, He passed over or “pasach” and the house was spared judgment.

The original directions for the Passover were given to Moses and Aaron in Egypt. The statute and happenings are noted in Exodus 12. God defines the purpose of the holiday to Israel. 

Exodus 12:26-27a “And when your children say to you, ‘What does this rite mean to you?’ you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the LORD who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’”

~

The second of God’s holidays is Unleavened Bread or Chag haMatazt in the Hebrew. The holiday begins on the 15th of Nisan and runs for seven days.

The directions of Unleavened Bread are noted in Exodus 12:14-20. The focus of the week is to live a life without leaven, the symbol for sin. Leaven is not to be in the house. Leaven products are not to be consumed. Bread without yeast, matzah, is to be eaten.

Exodus 12:14-20 “This day shall be for you a memorial day, and you shall keep it as a feast to the LORD; throughout your generations, as a statute forever, you shall keep it as a feast. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall remove leaven out of your houses, for if anyone eats what is leavened, from the first day until the seventh day, that person shall be cut off from Israel. On the first day you shall hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day a holy assembly. No work shall be done on those days. But what everyone needs to eat, that alone may be prepared by you. And you shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread, for on this very day I brought your hosts out of the land of Egypt. Therefore you shall observe this day, throughout your generations, as a statute forever. In the first month, from the fourteenth day of the month at evening, you shall eat unleavened bread until the twenty-first day of the month at evening. For seven days no leaven is to be found in your houses. If anyone eats what is leavened, that person will be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is a sojourner or a native of the land. You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your dwelling places you shall eat unleavened bread.”

Who is the sacrificial Passover Lamb of God? Who is the sinless Bread of Life? Got Jesus?

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Shavuot Reenactment, 5781/2021

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Spring Feasts with tags , , on May 23, 2021 by paulthepoke
photo: Temple Institute

While missiles were inbound towards the nation of Israel, a group of priests headed west of Jerusalem to Mitzpe Yeriho to reenact a Shavuot Temple service. The group was headed by Baruch Kahane who was appointed as the High Priest by the Sanhedrin back in 2016.

Mitzpe Yeriho is located between Jerusalem and the Dead Sea.

For a video of the reenactment, see the link below from i365 News.

https://www.israel365news.com/190927/shavuot-temple-reenactment-takes-place-outside-jericho-battling-amalek-inside-israel-watch/

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For recent history and information regarding the celebration of Shavuot, click on the link below.

https://paulthepoke.com/?s=shavuot

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Shavuot/Pentecost/Feast of Weeks, 5781/2021

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Spring Feasts, Trend Update with tags , , , , , , on May 9, 2021 by paulthepoke

Leviticus 23:15-16 ‘You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete Sabbaths. You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to the Lord.

On a Gregorian calendar in the year of 2021, the holiday of Shavuot/Feast of Weeks/Pentecost begins at sunset on Sunday, May 16th. The God Appointed holiday ends at sunset Tuesday, May 18th. The Feast takes place in the month of Sivan on the 6th and 7th of a Hebrew calendar. This is the Hebrew year 5781.

Shavuot is one of the three holidays where Jewish men are required to come to Jerusalem (Exodus 23:14-17). The men were to make their presentation and sacrifice before God at the Temple.

Exodus 23:14-17 “Three times in the year you shall keep a feast to me. You shall keep the Feast of Unleavened Bread. As I commanded you, you shall eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month of Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. None shall appear before me empty-handed. You shall keep the Feast of Harvest, of the firstfruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. You shall keep the Feast of Ingathering at the end of the year, when you gather in from the field the fruit of your labor. Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord GOD.

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We are one week out from the fourth of seventh God appointed holidays. Tensions are running high in Jerusalem, specifically on the Temple Mount.

May 8, 2021: The Muslims are about to complete their month long holiday of Ramadan on the evening of Wednesday, May 12th. Palestinians and Muslims have made their way to the Temple Mount to worship at the Al Aqsa Mosque. There is an estimated 75,000 to 100,000 worshippers attending the events. Upwards of 200+ Palestinians have been injured according to various estimates.

Today marks the second day of confrontation between Muslim worshippers and the Israeli forces. Israel claims the Palestinians initiated the violence by throwing rocks and shooting fireworks at Israeli security.

“Israel is acting responsibly to ensure respect for law and order in Jerusalem while allowing freedom of worship,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Palestinians are upset over the looming eviction of families from disputed neighborhoods in East Jerusalem.

https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/may/09/jerusalem-al-aqsa-clashes-injuries-israel

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Video from Twitter, Ahmer Khan on the events in Jerusalem.

International commentary is beginning to pour in regarding the situation.

Turkey’s President Recep Erdogan has called Israel “cruel” and a “terrorist state”.

Iran is encouraging others to incite violence against the Zionists.

The Arab League is holding an emergency meeting on Monday, May 10th to discuss the events in Jerusalem.

Missiles continue to be fired into southern Israel from the Gaza Strip.

For live updates, check out the link below from Middle East Eye.

https://www.middleeasteye.net/live/israel-palestine-sheikh-jarrah-jerusalem-update

Jewish men will be streaming into the Jerusalem this week as Ramadan ends in preparation for Shavuot or the Feast of Weeks. They will be making their way to the Western Wall of the Temple Mount.

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Passover: Blood on the Door Posts

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Gospel, Prophecy, Spring Feasts with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 28, 2021 by paulthepoke

Exodus 12:22 Take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the basin, and touch the lintel and the two doorposts with the blood that is in the basin. None of you shall go out of the door of his house until the morning.

Hyssop is a plant used for medicinal and religious purposes. Symbolically, hyssop is like bleach for sin. The plant is required for ceremonial cleanliness when a person came in contact with dead bodies or dead animals.

Passover: Hyssop

The context of Exodus 12 tells us the Passover Lamb was previously sacrificed. Each household was to butcher their own lamb. Each lamb was sacrificed by the front door of the house.

Blood from the animal was collected in the basin. The Hebrew word for “basin” is caph. The word can be defined and utilized a couple of different ways in the Old Testament. The word comes from the term caphaph. Another translation could be “threshold”. The word is primarily translated as basin, threshold, or door in the Old Testament.

In either case, the term implies the sacrifice likely took place near the front door or threshold where the blood could be collected in a basin.

Blood stained hyssop was painted on the lintel or the top of the door. Then, blood was painted on the doorposts. Again, the blood comes from the basin or container.

John 10:9 I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.

Jesus Christ is the door. His body is the basin that holds the shed blood. Jesus is the Lamb of God. He is the sacrificed paschal lamb.

Christ’s crown of thorns is the brushed blood on the lintel of the door. He is the shed blood on the doorposts with His outstretched arms on the cross. His feet were pierced with nails to the cross. A Roman soldier thrust a spear in His side to confirm His death.

Believers in Him are redeemed and purchased with that blood.

Romans 3:25 God presented Him as the atoning sacrifice through faith in His blood, in order to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance He had passed over the sins committed beforehand.

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Notice, the people are inside the house and they are instructed to stay inside until the next morning. The LORD does not see the sinful people inside the structure. The LORD sees the shed blood of the Passover Lamb.

Exodus 12:23 For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you.

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Passover Sacrifice Reenactment Near Temple Mount, Nisan 10, 5781

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Spring Feasts, Trend Update with tags , , , , , on March 25, 2021 by paulthepoke

Exodus 12:3 Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household.

https://www.facebook.com/templeinstitute

Dung Gate, Jerusalem, Nisan 10, 5781: Attitudes are changing. In the past, public Passover activities were viewed as agitation to the Muslims. Today, an attitude of acceptance is growing.

Assaf Fried, Spokesman, Temple Organizations had the following comments regarding the events.

“He (police officer) was enthusiastic that it should take place. He pressed me to make sure it happened. I was shocked because I remember when we operated as an underground movement. Even more impressive was that he referred to it as the ‘Korban Pesach’.”

“The police and the Jerusalem municipality now view this as another totally acceptable public happening, an event they would like to see take place. But the amazing thing is they actually refer to in terms of the Temple service. The reenactments were intended for the Kohanim to practice but it has had a profound effect on the less religious segments of Israel. The officials see that it is run properly, does not lead to incitement, and they are getting used to it, Even the mainstream media has begun to accept the event as something other than extremist. They are all beginning to accept that the Temple Service is not a crazy idea, that it is an acceptable aspect of modern Israel.”

“It seems clear that one day, sooner than we imagine, there will be the same event but a few hundred meters to the north, on the Temple Mount, and no one will think it is a crazy extremist event. In truth, it shouldn’t be since anyone who reads the Bible knows about this and it took place for thousands of years.”

The reenactment included the use of the silver horns. A lamb was roasted but not publicly sacrificed. The government did not grant permission for the sacrifice.

For those interested in the public service, click on the link below.

https://www.israel365news.com/188734/passover-sacrifice-dry-run-takes-place-near-temple-mount-police-warm-up-to-the-idea-watch

Exodus 12:8 They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it…

For more coverage and pictures of the event, check out the Temple Institute on social media.

https://www.facebook.com/templeinstitute

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I Am the Bread of Life… Jesus

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Gospel, Prophecy, Spring Feasts with tags , , , , , , , , , , on March 21, 2021 by paulthepoke

John 6:48 I am the bread of life.

Yeast is a leavening agent. In the Bible, leaven is equated with sin. The Hebrew word for leaven is chometz. The word means sour or bitter. This is what sin does to people. It makes them sour or bitter. Sin causes people to ferment or swell. Individuals see themselves as larger than what they actually are, that is, pride.

Bread without yeast is matzah. This term means sweetness without sourness. Matzah, the sweet taste of bread without sin.

In the New Testament, the Greek word for leaven is ζύμη/zumé. This is the same concept as noted in the Hebrew language of the Old Testament. HELPS Word Studies states: Leaven is generally a symbol of the spreading nature of evil.

Jesus Christ is the body without sin. He is sincerity and truth.

1 Corinthians 5:7-8 Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Jesus Christ is the prophetic matzah that Isaiah spoke of. Like the matzah, Jesus was striped, flogged, and scourged before He went to the cross.

Christ’s head was pierced with a crown of thorns. His feet and hands were nailed to the cross. A spear was thrust into His side to assure His death.

Isaiah 53:5 But He was pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His wounds we are healed.

Just like the broken Afikomen of a Passover Seder, the bread or body of Jesus Christ was broken for us. In Isaiah 53:5 alone, there are 4 examples of what He did for us.

  • …pierced for our transgressions…
  • …crushed for our iniquities…
  • …chastisement that brought us peace…
  • …His wounds we are healed…

Roughly 700 years before the Suffering Servant would emerge on to the scene, Isaiah prophesied a Messiah would come as a Savior on behalf of humanity. Look at the examples in Isaiah 53. Jesus Christ died for us.

  • Isaiah 53:4a Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried…
  • Isaiah 53:6b …but the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all To fall on Him.
  • Isaiah 53:8b …and as for His generation, who considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living for the transgression of my people…
  • Isaiah 53:10a But the LORD was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief; if He would render Himself as a guilt offering…
  • Isaiah 53:11b By His knowledge the Righteous One, My Servant, will justify the many, as He will bear their iniquities.
  • Isaiah 53:12b …because He poured out Himself to death, and was numbered with the transgressors; yet He Himself bore the sin of many, and interceded for the transgressors.

Because of the broken body of Christ, believers in Him are redeemed.

Galatians 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree.”

Unleavened Bread: Matzah
Unleavened Bread: Broken & Hidden Matzah

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Preview: God’s Spring Appointed Holidays 5781/2021

Posted in #PaulthePoke, Gospel, Prophecy, Spring Feasts with tags , , , , , , , , , , on March 14, 2021 by paulthepoke

There are seven God appointed holidays communicated through the Old Testament Law. The first three spring holidays were fulfilled on the appointed holiday by Jesus Himself. The names of the feasts are: Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits.

In the Hebrew year 5781 or the Gregorian calendar year of 2021, the holidays occur as follows. Passover essentially begins at sunset on Saturday, March 27th on a western calendar. The first day of Unleavened Bread is the next day at sunset on Sunday, March 28th. Lastly, the feast of First Fruits starts at sunset on Monday, March 29th. The holidays culminate and end at sunset on Sunday, April 4th.

Please note, there is not consensus on these dates within various studies of Judaism and Jewish Messianic believers in Yeshua or Jesus Christ. When in doubt, search for the new moon and full moon. Humanity struggles to keep time as God has directed.

Creation of Time: The Calendar

The first of God’s holidays is Passover or Pesach in the Hebrew. The holiday begins on the 14th day of the Hebrew month Nisan (March or April on a Gregorian calendar). There is a play on words in the original Hebrew. A “pesach” is an unblemished lamb which was required for the sacrifice. After the “pesach” was sacrificed, the blood was to be smeared on the wooden posts of the house. When God saw the blood on the door posts, He passed over or “pasach” and the house was spared judgment.

The original directions for the Passover were given to Moses and Aaron in Egypt. The statute and happenings are noted in Exodus 12. God defines the purpose of the holiday to Israel. 

Exodus 12:26-27a “And when your children say to you, ‘What does this rite mean to you?’ you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to the LORD who passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He smote the Egyptians, but spared our homes.’”

The second of God’s holidays is Unleavened Bread or Chag haMatazt in the Hebrew. The holiday begins on the 15th of Nisan and runs for seven days.

The directions of Unleavened Bread are noted in Exodus 12:15-20. The focus of the week is to live a life without leaven, the symbol for sin. Leaven is not to be in the house. Leaven products are not to be consumed. Bread without yeast, matzah, is to be eaten.

~

The third of God’s holidays is First Fruits or Reshit Katzir in the Hebrew. The one day holiday begins on the day after the Sabbath or Sunday on our calendar.

The directions for First Fruits are noted in Leviticus 23:9-14. The priest is to make a barley offering of the first portion of the harvest to the Lord. The priest intervenes on behalf of the people. The reality of the holiday for the people of Israel is this. The people bring their grain sheaf to the priest. They are to sacrifice a lamb without blemish. The offering is also to be presented with bread and wine.

Leave a comment »

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