...Continued
Themes have attributes. They are the characteristics that define the theme. The attributes of:
- Land,
- Blessings,
- Curses,
- Eating,
- Trees,
- Blood,
- Sacrifice
...to name a few, are common to the story of Adam and Havah and are present in other firsts too. The symbolism of each of these attributes are defined in scripture. They are all present at the first moed, the Passover, as well as the first furnishing of the Mishkan, the Altar of Sacrifice. Interestingly, these attributes are present in every covenant, as if they were carried forward from the very first one. But this too might be best left for another time.
I don't think it a leap to conclude that the Moedim are meant as a prophetic picture of the ministry of Messiah Y'shua. He is the Lamb slain from the foundations of the world. Messiah was the Lamb slain at the same time the Passover lambs were being slain in the Mishkan. But what else does scripture reveal about His prophetic fulfillment of these events?
The Spring Feasts
The Passover begins the week long observance of Unleavened Bread in remembrance of the events of the first Passover in Egypt. In that story, the children of Israel and all the nations that came out of Egypt with them, did not have time for their bread dough to rise, so they ate unleavened bread. But there is also a contrast drawn in scripture between pride and humility, respectively linking them to good and evil, darkness and light. The proud are describe as being 'puffed up', just as leaven puffs up bread dough. Messiah was described as not 'puffed up' because He humbling Himself, even unto death. Because He humbled Himself at the Passover sacrifice, because He died and was buried for Hag HaMatzah (Unleavened Bread), He is considered to have fulfilled the prophetic implications of that event.
During the Passover week, there is also a day called First Fruits (Yom HaBikkurim) in which a 'wave sheaf' offering is made. It is when the first fruits of the winter crops are waved before the heavens in thanksgiving to the Father for the harvest and as a means of asking permission to use them. It is recorded that Messiah Y'shua was resurrected on the day of First Fruits. It is also written that He is the first fruits of the (promised) resurrection.
So these three events ties Messiah to the moedim in a very symbolic and prophetic way. It ties the first three of the moedim together by the same token. It also brings us to the next item on our list, the first furnishing in the Mishkan, the Altar of Sacrifice, another one of those items related to the attributes of first covenant with the first Adam. So let's expand on the 4th and 5th items on our list:
The First Furnishing of the Mishkan
What sets the furnishings of the Mishkan apart from the Moedim is that the furnishings are a picture of what is required of us as believers, that we may draw close to God, just as the Moedim are a picture Messiah's ministry that we may be received. Messiah came as a man. As a man, He too brought His sacrifice. But as Messiah, He fulfilled the prophetic nature of the Passover. All this must be accomplished that He might go forth and assume the role of Priest and King.
The first furnishing as you enter the enclosure is the Altar of Sacrifice.
Deuteronomy 16:16-17
Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)
16 Three times a year all your men are to appear in the presence of Adonai your God in the place which he will choose at the festival of matzah, at the festival of Shavuot and at the festival of Sukkot. They are not to show up before Adonai empty-handed,17 but every man is to give what he can, in accordance with the blessing Adonai your God has given you.
There is an interesting dynamic that is not often explored. There are intermediaries that are used in this process. There are priests that bring the sacrifices of the children of Israel before the Creator. But those that bring the sacrifices to the priests are called to be priests also. They are called to minister to those nation without a covenant relationship with the Creator. So in Torah, there are two levels of priesthood. But this dynamic has existed from the beginning. Each successive generation had a Prophet/Priest that interceded for the entire clan, until the time of Israel. But that is another story.
Without the Mishkan and the Altar of Sacrifice, we are called to a sacrifice of prayer, worship, praise and intercession. We are called to teach, pastor, feed, clothe, succor and comfort those in need. But all of this falls under the same heading. We are to sacrifice of ourselves for the sake of others, just as Messiah sacrificed of Himself for our sake. We are to die to self, that we might do unto others even as He did for us.
In the Hebraic mindset, knowing is a function of doing. Doing is a function of knowing. Within the context of the theme of Light, knowing is the first step to doing. But understanding is the second step. We must lift our eyes up from the ground and take in the greater context, in order to more fully understand the effect of our doings. However, His wisdom that He gives to those that would ask, is paramount to doing correctly. Wisdom is about making good choices. You may know. You may do. You may understand. But unless your choices reflects His wisdom, your doings are worthless. That is why we must sacrifice self in order to please Him or to serve others.
Linking Creation Themes To the Theme of Covenant
Now we can include the 6th item on our list. We have so far, thematically linked the first day of creation, to the first covenant, to the first moed - the Passover, to the first furnishing in the Mishkan - the Altar of Sacrifice. But what about the first Seal judgement of the Revelation? The key to understanding the Seal is that it is a judgement based on the first covenant with Adam. It is about obedience (as are all judgements) but in this case it is about the difference between Light and Darkness and Good and Evil.
This concept is brought forward to Torah and we can look to Torah and to Messiah to help us understand. We serve an orderly God and a loving Father. His dealing with Israel on this matter is consistent with His dealing with Adam - and the children of Adam. It is about knowing Good - and as Messiah taught, there is only One who is Good.
When the children of Israel turned to other gods, the Father turned them over to another king. When Adam's eyes were opened to the knowledge of Evil, he was separated from the garden and separated from a personal relationship with his King. This is what the first Seal judgement is about:
Revelation 6:1-2
Complete Jewish Bible (CJB)
6 Next I watched as the Lamb broke the first of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living beings say in a thundering voice, Go! 2 I looked, and there in front of me was a white horse; its rider had a bow and was given a crown; and he rode off as a conqueror to conquer.
Written documents were understood in terms of scrolls. Covenants are contracts and they follow a specific format. The long and short of this explanation is simple. The contract is sealed and stored until it is violated. Then the Seal is broken and the remedy is read and applied.
Contracts have participating parties, terms and remedies when the terms are broken. The remedy here is clear. If you do not look to the Father or His Designate as your King, He will oblige you by turning you over to another King. If you do not choose to seek after Good, He will turn you over to Evil - until you see the error of your ways. But there comes a time when even His patience is exhausted.
Looking Forward
So now we have linked the first day of creation, to the first covenant, to the first moed - the Passover, to the first furnishing in the Mishkan - the Altar of Sacrifice and now, to the first Seal judgement. It all has to do with
the blessings and curses given in the first covenant and the process of reversing those curses in order to bring us back to the Garden.
But if you will recall, we also linked the first three Moedim together. We can call them the
Spring Feasts collectively. In my next post, I will show you the relationships of the first three days of Creation to the first three Moedim and the first three Covenants. We will also look at the thematic links to the first three furnishings in the Mishkan and how the first three Seal judgments are related to all of these things. We will also take a little closer look at the curses spoken in the Garden and see how all these things are related to the path back to the Garden.
Two new golden threads will be revealed. Two new themes will be discussed. So stay tuned for part 3 of 'A Passover Perspective', The Parting of the Waters and the Journey Home.
I pray that this blesses you as this Passover season approaches,
Phillip
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