07-07-2024 What is the significance of the 3 major feasts today?

What is the significance of the 3 major feasts today? (Exo 23:14-16)

The 3 Major Feasts :-

1. Feast of Unleavened Bread
2. Feast of Harvest
3. Feast of Ingathering

God clearly commanded the Israelites to celebrate these 3 Feasts. There are 7 feasts that the Israelites celebrated according to God’s command:-

1. The Passover
2. The Feast of Unleavened Bread
3. The Feast of the First Fruit
4. The Feast of Harvest or the Feast of Weeks
5. The Feast of Trumpet
6. The Day of Atonement
7. And the Feast of Ingathering that is also called the Feast of Booths

Often, the Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and the Feast of the First Fruit of barley are treated or regarded as one package. But to be precise, the date of the Passover is the 14^th day of the 1^st month. The date of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is the 15^th day of the 1^st month. The date of the Feast of the First fruit is 16^th day of the 1^st month, that marks the harvest of the barley.

The Passover (Exo 12:11-13; Ex 12:27)

Passover is the event that represents God’s mighty and gracious deliverance to set free of the Israelites from the hands of the Egyptian. God brought about the 10 plagues upon Egypt and the last plague was the plague of the first born. The spirit of God came down and killed every first born, whether is of human or cattle, in the land of Egypt including the land where the Israelites dwelt. The only way to be saved from this plague was to put the blood of the lamb on their doorpost and lintel. Because of this incident, the Egyptian completely gave up before God and freed the Israelites to go out from their land. This happened on the 14^th day of 1^st month. So, the actual separation from Egypt happened on the 15^th day of the 1^st month, which is the Feast of Unleavened bread.

Let us look at the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Lev 23:6-7).

What does the Feast of Unleavened bread mean to us today? It signifies the beginning of the believer’s life. We were all living in the fallen world. This fallen world is referred to Egypt (Rev 11:8). So, by hearing and accepting the good news of Jesus Christ, we came out from the world and separated from this fallen world. After departing from Egypt, God commanded we shall only eat unleavened bread. What does unleavened bread signify? Jesus said that a leavened bread is teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees which is teaching based on wrong understanding and misinterpretation (Mt 16:11-12). Therefore, an unleavened bread is the teaching of Jesus that is based on the Bible. It is the pure Word of God. As we depart from the world thru the grace of God, we must only consume the pure Word of God. We must only rely on the pure Word of God and not worldly teachings.

The Feast of First Fruits

The 16^th day of First Month is the Feast of First Fruit, where this feast celebrates the first harvest of Barley. Barley ripens earliest, before wheat, grapes and other fruits (Lev 23:9-10). The feast of the Feast of the First Fruit of barley signifies departing from the world. As we consume the Word of God on our wilderness journey, we become first fruit, the early fruit to God and we need to give thanks to God by giving offering to God. Feast of First Fruit marked the first harvest of the year, barley.

The Feast of Harvest

Firstly, the Feast of Harvest is to celebrate the harvest of wheat, which is the main source of grain for the Israelites. The Feast of Harvest is also called the Feast of Weeks. It means it is 7 weeks (49 days) after the Feast of First Fruit which is also 50^th day from the Feast of First Fruit of barley. Hence it is also called Pentecost. The Feast of Harvest is on the 6^th day of the 3^rd month.

There were two kinds of grain harvest the Israelites celebrated. The first one is the harvest of barley which happens on the 1^st month in Hebrew calendar. The second harvest is the harvest of wheat which happens on the 3^rd month. Since the Israelites consume bread as their main food, thus the harvest of wheat is considered the main harvest. Traditionally, the Feast of Harvest is the day to celebrate that the Israelites have something to eat by God’s grace.

However, when it comes to the spiritual significance, it means the moment we become the main harvest that God looks for. In the Old Testament, during exodus on 1446BC, Moses 4^th ascent to Mt Sinai is on the 6^th day of the 3^rd month, which is the Feast of Harvest. During the 4^th ascent, The Israelites listened to the voice of God and received the 10 commandments and the Law (Exo 20:17-19). Today we also received the 10 commandments and receiving God’s Word so that we can become God’s covenantal people and be the main harvest that God is looking for. In the New Testament, after the ascension of Jesus Christ, on Pentecost, God poured out His spirit upon the disciples (Acts 2:1-4). On this day, the disciples received the gift of the Holy Spirit. That gives them the understanding of the Word of God and give them power to do God’s work (Jhn 15:26). The main harvest that God looks for is the one who receive the Holy Spirit and do God’s work, so that we can become the main harvest of God.

The last major feast is the Feast of Ingathering

Traditionally, this is the time to celebrate the fruit that are already harvested to be gathered into the storehouse. However, in a spiritual approach, if we consider ourselves as the fruits that God looks for, then the feast of Ingathering is the time we are gathered into the kingdom of God. So, the 7^th month, which is the first month of the Jewish calendar, is a new beginning.  The 1^st day of the 7^th month is Day of Trumpet, where the Israelites undergo 10 days of repentance. The 10^th day of the 7^th month is the Day of Atonement. The Day of Atonement is the only feast that God ordered to celebrate with fasting. The ritual of a high priest sprinkling the blood inside the Holy of Holies and sending an escape goat represents forgiveness of sin that is purchased by the blood of Jesus Christ. The Feast of Ingathering is also called Feast of Booths (tents) (Lev 23:34; Dt 16:13). In order to be gathered into the storehouse, we need to be threshed like the harvest. We need to separate the chaff and grain just like how we need to separate sins from us.

In summary, God firmly ordered that we must celebrate the 3 major feasts (Exo 23:14-16). Let us remind ourselves to always consume the pure Word of God daily, to receive both the 10 commandments and the Holy Spirit during the Feast of Harvest, repent and be a holy harvest acceptable to God, so that we can be gathered into the kingdom of God.