Tracing Yeshua’s Blood From the Cross to the Ark – Part 3
If you know YHVH even a little bit, you know he is holy and has set up all of his Torah instructions for a reason. He has and will continue to fulfill all of his own instructions until heaven and earth pass away. So we understand from the instructions for the Day of Atonement that to fulfill the law, Yeshua’s holy blood has to be put on the Ark of the Covenant in the heavenly temple.
Have you thought about when and how Yeshua’s blood shed at Passover might have been put on the ark?
(more…)Tracing Yeshua’s Blood From the Cross to the Ark – Part 2
We know that Yeshua’s blood is what atones for us. We know that his blood was shed on the cross at Passover. We understand from the instructions on the Day of Atonement that to fulfill the law, his blood has to be put on the Ark of the Covenant in the heavenly temple. But there’s no instruction for doing that at Passover.
(more…)Tracing Yeshua’s Blood From the Cross to the Ark – Part 1
For the Feast of Unleavened Bread, I spent time with the Father every day imagining myself in the tabernacle. I’ve done this for several years because there’s a pattern of it commanded in Leviticus 8, where the priests are being consecrated for service. They eat unleavened bread and spend seven days at the entrance of The Holy Place. I wish I had seven days, but I spent several hours there that week. Most of that time I was face down, imagining YHVH’s presence
over the ark of the covenant behind the curtain in the Holy of Holies.
The Feast of Unleavened Bread ended on a Wednesday, and on the following Sunday I was sitting at my computer working on a project. YHVH interrupted me with his presence, calling me to him, so I went to my prayer chair where I meet with him.
(more…)Passover to Pentecost – The Spring Feasts: When are they and how are they relevant today?
The Lord’s Holy Days, Feast Days, Jewish Feasts, Appointed Times, Mo’edim — whatever term you use, don’t miss these days! If you are seeking more intimacy in your walk with Yeshua, learning about, experiencing and keeping these feasts (including the Sabbath) will bring you not only into deeper intimacy with him, but Yehovah will shower you with new understanding, unexpected blessings, strengthened faith and fresh excitement daily. I highly recommend it!
Included here is a list of my blog posts about the Spring Feasts and a Biblical haggadah for Passover.
First of all, this quick reference guide shows the 2024 Hebrew and Gregorian dates, the Hebrew names, the purpose of the Feasts and Biblical instructions for observing them from a Messianic understanding.
Although for me the first time through the Feasts was more learning than experiencing, with each passing year, they grow in richness and revelation of Yeshua. In the following posts I’ve attempted to share some of those insights in the hopes that you will be encouraged to start or continue your pursuit of your own journey into intimacy with Him.
- Why celebrate all these Jewish holidays? Haven’t those been done away with?
- The Feasts of the Lord: Going Through the Motions
- The Spring Feasts: A Time to Remember, A Time to Anticipate
- Preparing Ourselves for the Spring Feasts – Part 1
- Preparing Ourselves for the Spring Feasts – Part 2
- Passover and Easter: What are You Celebrating?
- I have been crucified with the Messiah
- Messianic Passover Haggadah for use at home or in a group setting
- Learnings from Leaven
- 2024 Omer Count Calendar
- Why Count the Omer? Part 1: The First 40 Days
- Why Count the Omer? Part 2: Nine Days of Prayer
- Why Count the Omer? Part 3: God’s Spirit Poured Out
- Pentecost: 2000 Years Ago or 2024?
- The Day of Pentecost Guarantees Yehovah’s Promises
- Yeshua’s Ascension Brings a Double Portion on Pentecost
Why Count the Omer?
The Omer Count always begins at sundown on the Feast of First Fruits, and ends on the day before Pentecost (Shavuot) – 7 weeks, 49 days. (See the dates here.)
So what’s an Omer? Why would Yehovah want us to count it? Is it still relevant today? Those were my questions, and these links discuss the answers I found in my search.
If you’ve never counted the omer, I encourage you to begin the journey and see how Yehovah answers these questions for you. If you’re counting the omer and looking for fresh insight, I pray He will use this teaching to enlighten your path. I hope you will leave a comment about what he’s taught you as well.
- Why Count the Omer? Part 1: The First 40 Days
- Why Count the Omer? Part 2: Nine Days of Prayer
- Why Count the Omer? Part 3: God’s Spirit Poured Out
Month 1 – Preparing Ourselves for the Spring Feasts, Part 1
The Spring Feasts begin with Passover during the Hebrew month of Nisan. On the Hebrew calendar, the Feasts always begin during the month of Nisan. But “Nisan” is a Babylonian name adopted well after the original command to observe Passover. In looking at the Hebrew name of the month, I found it was actually much more – more than a name or even a month. It’s a season, a designation, a process – the understanding of which brought all new revelation about the significance of the Spring Feasts. (more…)
Month 12 – Adar: Are you Ready?
Adar is the last month on the Hebrew calendar. Adar marks the end of the year and the following month is the first month of the year, Nisan. To understand the month of Adar, we must first understand the month of Nisan. (more…)
Why Count the Omer, Part 1: The First 40 Days
Counting the Omer – most are familiar with the culmination of the count, which is Pentecost, also called the Festival of Weeks. “Weeks” is taken from the Hebrew word “shavuot” and refers to the seven weeks that precede Pentecost. Leviticus 23:15 tells us to count the weeks between the Feast of First Fruits and Pentecost:
“From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks.”
Learnings From Leaven
Did you know, “about 40 to 50 percent of your day is made up of habits? But you don’t recognize them because they’re unconscious.”
Olympic multi-gold medal swimmer, Michael Phelps started training at the age of 7, but his coach knew habits—not skills alone—would be the driver of his success. So, Phelps’s coach built a series of activities before every race designed to give him a sense of building victory. On the day of the race, he gets out of bed, eats certain things, does specific stretches and exercises, he thinks about certain things. By the time the race arrives, Phelps is already more than halfway through his unconscious habits and the pattern he lives by on a daily basis. That way, the race itself—and winning the race—is just another step in Phelps’s laundry list of things to do. He’s made winning a habit.
Wow – the mind is an amazing thing! But how do we transfer that to other parts of our lives? (more…)
Yeshua’s Ascension Brings a Double Portion on Pentecost
In a separate blog post I discuss how the day of Pentecost/Shavuot kicks-off the new covenant, guarantees our eternal inheritance, and brings new life through the Holy Spirit – enabling us to fulfill our mission and destiny on earth.
As believers in Yeshua, we already carry the Holy Spirit within us every day. But if we’re prepared for it, I believe there’s a double portion of Yeshua’s Spirit poured out on Shavuot. (more…)
The Day of Pentecost Guarantees Yehovah’s Promises
Pentecost, Feast of Weeks, Shavuot – the culmination of the omer count, the giving of the law at Mt. Sinai and the pouring out of the Holy Spirit – all on one day. This is certainly something to celebrate!
My dad was a pastor. One day he was speaking to another pastor and they got on the topic of the Holy Spirit, which was one of my dad’s favorite topics. At one point this pastor asked, “So, what’s the big deal about the Holy Spirit?”
Well, my dad was so flabbergasted, he ended up writing a book to answer the question. It’s called, The Holy Spirit…So What’s the Big Deal?
It IS a big deal! And…in my opinion, it’s a big deal in a whole series of big deals. (more…)
Preparing Ourselves for the Spring Feasts, Part 2
In Part 1, we looked at not just the month of Nisan, but the season of Nisan, “The Abib” (called Aviv in Hebrew). We learned that it’s a time of:
- Moving from one place to another by the supernatural hand of Yehovah.
- The unrighteous becoming ripe for punishment and the righteous ripe to step into their future.
- Moving toward our destiny.
What is our role in all this? (more…)
Purim – Partnering with God to Bring His Will
“As a Christian, serious about living out Christ’s intention for me, I view life as a series of opportunities to respond to and maximize… to recognize opportunities – either immediate or in the future – and prepare for, or respond well to them.” Dr. Jerry Cook
This summarizes our partnership with God in bringing his will. This is exactly what Esther and Mordecai did when the Jews were threatened with extermination by the Persians, as recorded in the Book of Esther – the story commemorated on the festival of Purim. (more…)
The Spring Feasts: A Time to Remember, A Time to Anticipate
Typically we think of the Spring Feasts as a time to remember – the Exodus and Yeshua’s death on Passover, his resurrection on the Feast of Firstfruits, the giving of the Torah and the Holy Spirit on Pentecost.
Then, we think of the Fall Feasts as a time to anticipate – Yeshua’s return on the Feast of Trumpets, the Lamb’s Book of Life opening on the Day of Atonement and tabernacling with Yeshua on the Feast of Tabernacles.
However, I found there’s also more to anticipate in the Spring Feasts. There’s more to come. The remembering helps us understand what to anticipate in the future. (more…)
Why Count the Omer? Part 2: Nine Days of Prayer
In Leviticus 23:15 God instructs us to count the seven weeks (49 days) that occur before the Day of Pentecost (the 50th day) also called the Festival of Weeks and Shavuot in Hebrew. But counting days with no explanation? Why would this be important to God and to us?
For the Israelites, it pertained mainly to their harvest cycle and offerings to be presented. For us living after the time of Yeshua, and the giving of the Holy Spirit to the disciples, we can see the spiritual implications of this count. We know that on the 50th day after Yeshua’s resurrection, something unimaginably wonderful happened: The pouring out of the Holy Spirit not only on the disciples, but on all those who come to faith in Yeshua as the Messiah! The implications of that day reverberate even stronger in these last of the last days. The 50th day is one I want to be prepared for every year. (more…)
Why Count the Omer? Part 3: God’s Spirit Poured Out
This 3-part blog series focuses on the Lord’s instruction in Leviticus 23:15 to count the seven weeks (49 days) that occur before the Day of Pentecost (the 50th day) also called the Festival of Weeks and Shavuot in Hebrew. For the Israelites, the count was about the harvest, thus the word “omer” which was a unit of measure used to count and track grain harvests. Yeshua taught us the spiritual meaning of “harvest” as those ready to receive the good news of the Messiah (Matt 9:37). That’s what the third phase of counting the omer is about.
In Parts 1 and 2, I laid out a three-phase structure for the 49-day count:
- The first 40 days
- Days 41-49
- The 50th day
The first two phases prepare us for what’s about to happen on the 50th day and beyond. (more…)
Passover and Easter: What are You Celebrating?
Passover and Easter usually occur close together on the calendar, and presumably both commemorate the same event. Are they the same or what’s the difference? Up until a few years ago, I assumed Passover was Jewish and Easter was Christian. But what I found surprised me. (more…)
Pentecost: 2000 Years Ago or 2024?
The Day of Pentecost – we remember the supernatural flames appearing in the room where Yeshua’s followers were gathered. Inside the room, there was the sound of a “mighty rushing wind” and the speaking of other languages they’d never learned. It’s the pouring out of God’s very spirit into mere humans (Acts 2). That’s plenty to celebrate and remember right there. But what’s the purpose in our noting it every year? (more…)
Messianic Sabbath 