God’s Year Planner
Text: Leviticus 23
Introduction: On the wall of my study I have a Year Planner. Every year I secure a chart which lays out the days of the year so that I can see, at a glance, where I am supposed to be and what I am supposed to be doing. In the book of Amos 3:7 we read; “Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets.” (Amos 3:7). God declared He would do nothing without first revealing it to His servants, the Prophets. God, too, has His Year Planner. Whatever God does is never the result of after thought. He is working to a plan, He is working to order, He knows what tomorrow brings because He is in the business of bringing about tomorrow. From the Old Testament to the New, Genesis to Revelation, God provides picture after picture of His entire plan for mankind and one of the most startling prophetic pictures is outlined for us right here in the Seven Jewish Feasts of Leviticus 23. This is God calendar, God’s Year Planner, in a chapter.
The Hebrew word for feasts (moadim), it is a word which appears in Scripture 223 times and literally means "appointed times." In fact the first time this word crops up is in Genesis 1:14 - Let’s look that up. Notice the word “seasons”, it is the same word translated “feasts in Leviticus 23, and it means appointed times. Why has God set the stars and planets in the sky? “For signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years.” In other words, that we might tell the time. Why has God designed seven specific feasts listed in Leviticus 23? That we might tell the time. They are “for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years.” (Genesis 1:14).
God has carefully planned and orchestrated the timing and sequence of each of these seven feasts to reveal to us a special story. The seven annual feasts of Israel were spread over seven months of the Jewish calendar, at set times appointed by God. And today they are still celebrated by observant Jews. But for both Jews and non-Jews who have placed their faith in Jesus as Messiah these special days demonstrate the work of redemption through God’s Son. They lead us from the cross to the crown, from Christ’s triumphal entry into Jerusalem, right through to His coming millennial kingdom.
Leviticus 23 truly is one of the most profound chapters in all the Word of God, and whilst we as Christians are not required to celebrate the Jewish feast days legislated for in this chapter, it behoves us to study them. Why?
I. Because They Reveal To Us That Our God Is a God of Order
A. Writing to a church in chaos, the Corinthians, Paul said “Let all things be done decently and in order.” (1 Corinthians 14:40).
1. From the very first to the last God is a God of order.
2. The book of Leviticus is a book that concerns itself with order.
3. It is a book in which God regulates the worship of His people.
a. There are those who think that it really doesn’t matter how we worship God as long as we do,.
b. But you know God has decreed how He must be worshipped. Speaking to the woman at the well Jesus said, “God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24).
4. Now if you were to read through the book of Leviticus by the time you got to chapter 10 you would encounter two men, sons of Aaron, priest of God, by the name of Nadab and Abihu who took the attitude that it doesn’t really matter how God is worshipped.
5. The Bible says they offered “strange fire” before the Lord - what that means exactly we cannot be sure.
a. Various things have been suggested, perhaps they used ingredients in their incense which was not divinely prescribed, or that they used fire other than fire from off the altar.
b. Who knows? What we do know is that however they offered the fire it was unacceptable worship in the sight of God which ultimately cost them their lives.
(I) See Leviticus 10:1-3.
6. You se the truth is you cannot worship God any old way, because God, being a holy God, demands that we worship in a certain way - He is a God of order.
a. The book of Leviticus is a book of regulation, it is God setting in place the way in which He desired to be worshipped under the O.T. economy.
b. And in chapter 23 God arranged a calendar to guide in that worship.
c. But this is a calendar that serves not only to remind the Jewish people of their seven annual obligations, but also to convey their entire history centring around Christ.
d. Which brings us to the second reason why we ought to study these Scriptures
II. Because They Reveal To Us Great Truth Pertaining to Christ & Israel
A. The first four of the seven feasts occur during the springtime (Passover, Unleavened Bread, First Fruits, and Weeks) and they all have already been fulfilled by Christ in the New Testament.
B. The final three holidays (Trumpets, The Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles) occur during autumn, all within a short fifteen-day period.
1. These autumn feasts have not yet been fulfilled.
2. But just as the four spring feasts were fulfilled literally and right on the actual feast day in connection with Christ's first coming, these three autumn feasts, it is believed by many, will likewise be fulfilled literally in connection to the Lord's second coming.
C. Now we are going to look at all of this in detail over the next few weeks, but for the moment, in a nutshell, here is the prophetic significance of each of the seven Levitical feasts of Israel:
1. Passover (Leviticus 23:5) - Pointed to the Messiah as our Passover lamb.
a. See - 1 Corinthians 5:7
b. Jesus was crucified on the day of preparation for the Passover, at the same time that the lambs were being slaughtered for the Passover meal that evening.
2, Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:6) - Pointed to the consequence of Christ’s death (as leaven is a picture of sin in the Bible), making Him the perfect sacrifice for our sins.
a. Jesus' body was in the grave during the first days of this feast, like a kernel of wheat planted and waiting to burst forth as the bread of life.
3. First Fruits (Leviticus 23:10) - Pointed to the Messiah's resurrection as the first fruits of the righteous.
a. Jesus was resurrected on this very day, which is one of the reasons that Paul refers to him in 1 Corinthians 15:20 as the "first fruits from the dead."
4 Weeks or Pentecost (Leviticus 23:16) – Occurred fifty days after the beginning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread and pointed to the great harvest of souls and the giving of the Holy Spirit
a. The Church, was completely Jewish at its outset remember, was actually established on this day when God poured out His Holy Spirit and 3,000 Jews responded to Peter's great sermon and his first proclamation of the Gospel.
5 Trumpets (Leviticus 23:24) – According to Numbers 10, the Jewish people used trumpets to gather the assembly, to declare war or announce they were moving camp.
a. Right now the people of Israel are a scattered people, and they have to be gathered.
b. So this feast pictures the gathering and restoration of the Jewish people during the coming time of Great Tribulation.
6. Day of Atonement (Leviticus 23:27) – This prophetically points to the Second Coming of Jesus when He will return to earth.
a. That will be the Day of Atonement for the Jewish remnant when they “they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for [his] only [son], and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for [his] firstborn”, repent of their sins, and receive Him as their Messiah (Zechariah 12:10
b. See also Romans 11:1-6, 25-36.
7. Tabernacles or Booths (Leviticus 23:34) – This feast day points to the Lord's promise that He will once again “tabernacle” with His people when He returns to reign over all the earth in His Millennial Kingdom
a. See Micah 4:1-7
III. Because They Reveal To Us How We As Christians Should Be Busying Ourselves Until Jesus Comes!
A. As we examine the Scriptures, and in particular the O.T. Scriptures we need to approach them from three areas.
1. The first is in their Primary Association - What did they mean for the people to whom they were originally given - we have spoken of this already - they regulated the worship of Israel and created special occasions when the Jewish people might recall the blessings of God and enter into fellowship with Him.
2. Secondly we need to think of their Prophetic Anticipation - and we have considered that also, how that this chapter sets out a timeline of Israel’s history centring around her relationship to her Messiah.
3. Thirdly we need to look for some Personal Application - how does this passage apply to me, and that’s what we want to think about now.
4. For Lev 23 speaks to us - it speaks to us of our worship and our witness.
B. Notice, if you will how often throughout this chapter the various feasts are said to be “unto the Lord.”
1. Vss 6,8, 12, 13, 16-18, 25, 27, 33, 36-39 & 41.
2. Notice also in verse 2 how God describes them as “my feasts”
3. As we said earlier the word “feasts” means “appointed times” - these were Israel’s appointments with God.
4. Another term that is recurrent in the chapter is “convocation’ - which appears some eleven times - vss 2-4, 7-8, 21, 24, 27, 35-37
a. It means a “calling together” or an “assembly”
b. These feasts were great get togethers for the Jewish people.
c. These seven “holy” days brought the people together three times each year, all seven requiring three convocations.
d. This was God’s time, His feasts, but how quickly they degenerated into mere form and duty.
(i) Isaiah 1:14
e. Notice by the time of Christ they were no longer referred to as the “feasts of the Lord, but as belonging to the Jews.
(i) John 2:13, 5:1; & 7:2.
f. What began has holy convocation had degenerated into unholy convocations - and here is the lesson for us, you see is it not possible that we too may take the things of God, those times when He calls us into fellowship with Himself and make it our own to do our duty and no more and be satisfied with formal religion.
g. May we not take the Lord’s Day and make it “our day”, take Sunday and make it but a fun day?
(i) Illus: Weather’s good - so we will go for a drive, - go to church another time. Visitors, TV, sports etc.
(ii) In our worship is it not possible for holy things to lose their vitality and turn to formality.
(iii) How easy it is to half heartedly participate in worship, through cold, indifferent even irreverent forms.
(iv) Brethren let us search pour hearts and remember that God has called us here to meet with Him!!
C. Then, let us think for a moment about where we are on this calendar of God’s?
1. Yes, the timeline relates to Israel primarily, but there is a vital lesson for us also.
2. You see right now we are situated between Pentecost and Trumpets, and that period in the Jewish year is a time of harvest.
3. During that period the Jews busied themselves gathering their grain.
4. Oh, brethren now is the time for harvest - remember the words of our Lord Jesus when He said to His disciples “Say not ye, There are yet four months, and then cometh harvest? behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” (John 4:35).
5. At any time the trumpet may sound and harvest time is past - now is the day of salvation, now is the hour when we must busy ourselves winning men and women to Christ.
Conclusion: God’s clock is ticking, time is passing, each passing day is one day closer to the realisation of the autumn feasts. Time is short. Make no mistake about it, Leviticus 23 is a monumental chapter of God’s Word; It is filled with symbolism, types, and shadows and its message is too important for us to miss.
But if we hear it up here (the head) and miss it down here (the heart) we have missed it, because whilst its message should thrill our spirits with the greatness of God, its responsibilities should concern us greatly. God has set out His Year Planner - He knows the day and the hour. He sees, at a glance, where we are supposed to be and what we am supposed to be doing. The soul searching question to those who believe is - are you doing it? Are we worshipping Him acceptably, are we fellowshipping with Him with vitality, are witnessing for Him faithfully?
