Title: The Redemptive Historical Administration of the Feast of the First Fruit
The founding pastor reminded us of the importance of the feasts of the Lord. There are 3 major feasts in the Old Testament: The first is the Passover, the second is the Feast of Weeks (or Pentecost), and the third is the Feast of Booth (or the Feast of Ingathering). They are not only important to the Jews but to the Christians because these feasts explain about the journey of faith and symbolize the unending feast that we will have in the kingdom of God.
- The Passover (Exo 12:27; Num 33:3)
It is the day when the people of Israel were liberated and delivered from the hands of the Egyptians. The people of Israel lived a life of slavery for 430 years in Egypt. As the time came, God performed His salvation by pouring out the 10 plagues upon the land of Egypt, but Pharaoh kept refusing and didn’t listen to God. So, on the last night of the 10 plagues, God brought about the plague of killing all the firstborns in Egypt and ordered to the people of Israel to take a lamb and put its blood on the doorposts and lintel so that the spirit of death would pass over such houses. This was the night that the judgment was brought upon the enemy but at the same time, the salvation and liberation was brought upon God’s people. This lamb that was slain signifies Jesus Christ who is the Passover lamb. As the people of Israel were saved by the blood of the lamb, we are also saved by the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ (Jhn 1:29; 1 Cor 5:7; Exo 12:13-14).
One of the important rituals of how to keep the Passover is to eat the Passover lamb. If we read the Bible, God specified and explained in detail of how to eat the lamb. If we look at 1 Cor 11:23-32 and Jhn 6:47-58, Jesus instituted the Holy Communion (Eucharist) through the Passover meal. If we do not eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, we have no life (Jhn 6:53).
What does it mean to eat the lamb? (Heb 5:12; Rev 10:9-10) It means we have to receive the Word of Jesus Christ. Passover is the day when we receive Jesus Christ, and by putting the blood on the door and by eating the Word of God, we are being saved.
- The Feast of Weeks (Exo 34:22; Lev 23:15-16)
When God explained how the people of Israel should live after entering the land of Canaan, God ordered specifically about how to keep the Feast of Weeks (the feast of the wheat harvest). They should count 7 weeks or 50 days from the time of the feast of barley harvest and give a wave thanksgiving offering with the first fruit to God before they put any crops into their mouth. In Jos 5:12, the people of Israel kept the feast as God had commanded them.
The first fruit signifies Jesus Christ. But at the same time, it teaches us that we should become the fruit of God (Jhn 12:24). If the Passover is about being saved by eating the Word of God, the Feast of Weeks is about becoming mature and ripen fruit for God.
Another name for the Feast of Weeks is Pentecost because it means 50. After Jesus shed His precious blood on the cross as the Passover, when it comes to Pentecost, God poured out the Holy Spirit upon the people. Jesus said that when the Helper (the Holy Spirit) comes, He will remind you and make you understand all the words I said to you.
What is the characteristic of mature believer? It is thanksgiving. The Bible repeatedly emphasizes about how to give God, how to give a wave thanksgiving offering. Therefore, we can say that this feast is the feast of thanksgiving. Giving God is the characteristic of a mature believer (Luk 21:1-4).
- The Feast of Booths (Deut 16:13)
After all the harvest is done and crops and fruits are stored to a barn, the people of Israel should celebrate the Feast of Ingathering. This last feast symbolizes mature believers entering the Kingdom of God and live forever with our Lord.
Our faith journey neither ends by the point of being saved, nor by the point of becoming the mature, but we have to go all the way until we enter the kingdom of God and live with God forever. We should be part of the consummation of God’s kingdom. We should be there.
Another name for this feast is the Feast of Booths because God commanded the people of Israel to go out the wilderness and stayed in the tent for 7 days (Lev 23:43).
The reason God ordered to do such was for His people to remember that the people of Israel lived in booths when God brought them out from the land of Egypt. It doesn’t mean that they should only remember how difficult their journey was. They should remember while they were living in the booths, God was also with them in the booth.
The tabernacle was with them on earth while they were taking such journey. Mercy seat and The Ark of the Covenant were the place symbolizes the presence of God was with them in this journey (Jhn 1:14).
Greek word for ‘to dwell’ is ‘skenoo’ which means ‘to live in a tent.’ It is not to remember how difficult their journey was but to remember that God was with them and was among them.
We should also remember that God was with us during the time of wilderness. We should remember that He was with us and among us. Therefore, we should come to a realization that there will be a time when God will live among us: that’s the consummation of the Kingdom of God.
We have to keep the 3 feasts not by keeping them as a ritual but by understanding the meanings of the feasts and live our life according to it. We should remember and be reminded about being saved, about becoming mature, and about entering God’s kingdom as often as we need.
The Lord's Covenant Church Malaysia 