Through A Glass Darkly

Have you ever had an experience that, at the time, seemed like the worst thing that could happen to you? Did you look back on it later, only to discover that it changed your life for the better? That's the value of hindsight, and often hindsight reveals a clearer picture of the path our lives are taking, rather than does the moment at hand. As the saying goes, "We can't see the forest for the trees". Sometimes we need to view the broader picture over a period of time to fully grasp where we've been and where we are going.

That reminds me of ancient Israel's experiences. God chose to reveal his plan of salvation through these unlikely people. The Old Testament contains the record of their calling and the purpose for which they were set apart. The Lord freed them from the slavery of Egypt and led them on a journey through the Sinai desert into the land of Canaan, a land promised to their ancestors, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, many years earlier. During their wilderness wandering, He taught them laws, statutes and judgments for righteous living. He also revealed to them seven annual feasts or festivals, which they were instructed to keep in their seasons upon their arrival in the promised land. These festivals were rehearsals of God's plan of redemption for mankind through Christ, a foreshadow of good things to come. They were celebrated in an agricultural context, the first four associated with the spring harvest season, the last three with that of the fall. They are at the same time both historical and prophetic, and all contain within them the role of Jesus Christ as the Messiah. The first four teach the events of his first coming, which have already been historically fulfilled. The last four teach the events that will surround his second coming yet in the future. You will find them outlined in the 23rd chapter of Leviticus, but their deep meaning is revealed throughout both the Old and New Testament writings, and are in fact the theme of the entire bible.

It is obvious, however, that these people never fully grasped the reality of what they were observing. Year after year, they went through the motions, they followed the ordinances, they offered their sacrifices, the priests fulfilled their temple duties and time marched on generation after generation. When He appeared, who was the reality, they didn't recognize Him. "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth", John 1:14. "He was in the world, and the world was made by him, and the world knew him not", John 1:10. Every one of the annual feasts pointed straight to Christ. Though they were observed to the letter year after year, was their meaning understood?

Under the law, Israel was required to offer sacrifices to atone for their sins, but only as a figure of the only sacrifice that could satisfy. Heb 10:1 says, "For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect". Verse 3 continues, "But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year". Only a sinless life could satisfy the demands of the law, so our Savior came to take upon his own body the penalty for sin in our stead and redeem us from the law of sin and death. John the baptist declared of Jesus at his baptism, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world", John 1:29. I Pet 1:19 speaks of Christ as a lamb without spot or blemish. I Cor 5:8 tells us that Christ is our passover, sacrificed for us. Each year, when the children of Israel celebrated the Passover, did they grasp the reality of that event? As they sacrificed their lambs, did they know that they were reheasing the sacrifice of the Savior of the world? That very first Passover, as they took the blood of lambs and sprinkled it on the doorposts of their homes to protect themselves from the death angel, did they realize that their actions were symbolic of salvation through the blood of Christ? No, for they were only in the moment. They were about to escape Egypt and they only saw the Lord's instructions in the context of their eminent departure. As future generations would observe this miraculous event, it would be viewed only in a historical context. "And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service? That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the Lord's passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses", Ex 12:26-27. They were unable to look down the corridor of time to that future "Lamb" that would change the world forever.

When Israel celebrated the Feast of Unleavened Bread by removing all leaven from their homes and eating unleavened bread for seven days, did they know it was symbolic of the removal of sin out of their lives? After accepting the sacrifice of Christ for our sins, we are to repent and turn from all unrighteousness and follow him into newness of life. Heb 10:26 tells us, "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins". When believers repent, they are to flee the slavery of sin by removing leaven from their lives. Our bodies are spiritually the temple of God and we house the Holy Spirit, I Cor 3:16. Paul instructed the Corinthians, "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For Christ our passover is sacrificed for us. Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth", I Cor 5:7-8. Paul tells us in Rom 12:1-2 to offer our bodies as a living sacrifice unto the Lord. He implores us not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds. No, they did not fathom the rich meaning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. For them, it's meaning was only historical. Israel's exodus from Egyptian slavery began on the evening of the first day of unleavened bread. It took a seven-day journey for them to completely leave the territory of their captivity. They could not see the broader plan of God in the events they were experiencing. They could not know that they were rehearsing mankind's ultimate escape from the slavery of sin, which would take seven-thousand years. They only understood the moment and what it meant to them in that generation. Future generations would remember that day as the day of their ancestor's physical deliverance. "And it shall be when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What is this? that thou shalt say unto him, By strength of hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of bondage", Ex 13:14.

Upon arriving in the promised land, the children of Israel began setting down roots, building homes and growing crops. Each year, when they reaped the early spring wheat harvest, they were commanded to first bring a sheaf of the firstfruits to the priest, who would wave it before the Lord to be accepted. Only then could they gather the grain. They were commanded to observe this ceremony on the holy day referred to as the Feast of Firstfruits. Did they realize what this observance represented? This festival pictures the resurrected Christ and his ascension to the throne of God to be accepted as the firstfruits of mankind. I Cor 15:20 tells us, "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept". Continuing in verses 22-23 we see, "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming". It was on this day, following his resurrection, that Christ ascended into heaven to be accepted by his Father and receive the kingdom. Daniel saw a vision of this event many years prior to the birth of our Savior. "I saw in the night visions and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. And there was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all people, nations, and languages, should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that shall not be destroyed." (Dan 7:13-14).

Fifty days later, when the children of Israel observed Pentocost, did they realize the significance of this celebration? It was historically the day that the children of Israel received the commandments at Mount Sinai. After Christ's ascension, it was the day that the early Church received the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4). Jeremiah prophesied of this day in chapter 31:31-33, speaking of a time when God would make a new covenant with His people, "I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people". This feast celebrates those who are the first to trust in Christ. They receive the firstfruits of the Spirit, according to Rom 8:23. James tells us, "Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures", James 1:18. Revelation speaks of these as they who "follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb", Rev 14:4. As we read in I Cor 15:23, they are those who are Christ's at his coming.

As Israel observed the three remaining fall festivals, did they understand the future events portrayed in these feasts? As they celebrated the Feast of Trumpets, were they aware of the future trumpet blast that would split the sky, ushering in Christ's second coming to this earth to establish the kingdom of God? Were they able to grasp the deep significance of this feast? The bible teaches that all who have ever died are asleep in their graves awaiting a resurrection from the dead. Paul taught the Christians of his day in I Cor 15:51-52, “Behold, I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep (in death), but we shall all be changed. In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.” In I Thes. 4:13-17, he told the church not to be ignorant concerning those who had previously died, “For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.” The book of Revelation speaks of the blowing of seven trumpets in the last days. When the seventh or last trumpet sounds, we are told that the kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord and his Christ. Rev 11:18 tells us of that time, yet in the future, "And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth".

As they kept the Day of Atonement, did they understand the penalty for sin and the terrible price that would be paid for their ultimate redemption? This day alone was a commanded day of fasting and afflicting one's soul. It was the only day the high priest could enter into the holy of holies inside the temple, to make atonement before the Lord for himself and the nation as a whole. An interesting ceremony took place on that day. The high priest would take of the congregation two goats. Lots were drawn, one for the Lord and one for the Azazel (goat of departure). The goat that drew the lot for the Lord was sacrificed as a sin offering. The azazel goat was presented alive. The high priest laid hands upon the head of the live goat and confessed all the iniquities of Israel upon it. Then a fit man was chosen to lead the goat into the wilderness to an uninhabited land. Did Israel comprehend what this ceremony foretold? Did they understand that Christ was to become our eternal high priest? Christ entered once for all time into the holy of holies in the heavenly tabernacle, presenting his own body as an atonement for mankind's sins. When he appears the second time, it will be without sin unto salvation (Heb 9:28). Satan will be removed from power and restrained, where he will not be able to influence man during the thousand year reign of Christ and the Saints (firstfruits). "And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, and cast him into a bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season." (Rev 20: 1-3).

At the time of the grape harvest and the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles, did Israel foresee the reality associated with this feast? For seven days they were commanded to dwell in temporary booths or kiosks as a reminder that their ancestors lived in temporary dwellings in the wilderness on their way to the promised land. It also is a reminder that we are mortal beings living temporarily in these physical bodies as we journey to our promised land, the Kingdom of God. John 1:14 tells us that, at his first coming, Christ left his home in heaven and "tabernacled" with us in the flesh. When Christ returns to this earth the second time, he will usher in the kingdom of God and he will rule the earth with his saints for one thousand years. The Last Great Day, immediately following the Feast of Tabernacles, is symbolic of the great white throne judgment following the thousand-year reign of Christ upon the earth, where all who have ever lived will stand before the judgment seat of God to be judged according to their works. Death and hell will be cast into a lake of fire, along with all those who are not found written in the book of life. When all is complete, God himself will dwell with men. "And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God", Rev 21:3.

Again I ask the question. Did Israel understand the reality of these annual holy day seasons? The answer is a resounding NO! Although God used the nation of Israel to rehearse the events of Christ's first and second coming, they did not have the heart to understand the deep meaning of the feasts and what they portrayed. The called-out ones or firstfruits of God, who have the very Spirit of God, have been given understanding. These comprise "spiritual" Israel. Their minds have been opened to the significance of the annual feasts, and therefore, the ultimate plan of God for mankind as well. Even so, God's ways are much higher than our ways and his thoughts higher than our thoughts. We can only understand in part while in these fleshly tabernacles. We can only see the shadow of good things to come until that which is perfect appears. The apostle Paul sums it up with the following words from I Cor 13:12. "For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known." May God hasten the day!

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