WHY DO WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND GOD’S CALENDAR?
The Fall Holy Days of God are coming up in a few months.
It is impossible to appreciate these days for what they are; or to observe them properly unless you understand how God tells time.
God has His own calendar. He hung his clock in the sky and He gave it to us to observe our seasons and times.
Almighty God lives outside of time and mankind lives inside of time.
TIME IS THE TOOL THAT MEASURES OUR HEARTS TOWARD GOD
Time is one of the gifts God gave to us.
It has been very helpful for mankind to have this precious gift of time.
Time has helped us either come closer to God or move further away from God.
Time is the tool that measures our hearts toward God.
HOW DO WE KNOW WHEN TIME BEGAN?
Time was created for mankind and for his benefit. Time began the very first day that God created Adam and Eve.
This was the sixth day of the earth.
Time did not officially start until God gave it to mankind. on that sixth day of creation.
We know there was evening and there was morning, day and night for the first six days; but we do not know how long those first six days were because we were not officially on God’s clock yet.
Time for us officially started when God made man and woman and put them into the garden of Eden.
GOD PROCLAIMED A REST AFTER CREATING MANKIND
Bringing man and woman into the world must have been God’s hardest work during the creation; because the very next day; the seventh day, God proclaimed a rest day both for Himself and mankind.
The seventh day is for man to rest with God.
This rest of the seventh day was the very first inkling that man and woman had of time after they were created. It was a perfect way to start. Their very first day inside of time was spent resting with God.
God’s people have been resting with God on the seventh day ever since.
PEOPLE BEGAN TO FOLLOW GOD’S CALENDAR
The people following God have been following His calendar ever since.
Somewhere in all of this time though, mankind forgot all about God and wondered from God’s ways. During those times they forgot to follow the time (calendar) that God had given to them. Whenever this happened; and the people eventually repented and returned to God; God always showed them the right days again and when their hearts were right they returned to keeping God’s calendar.
We know this from observing the Israelites journey through the wilderness. We can see the way that God gave them the manna from Heaven. It rained down just enough for three meals a day every day for five days. On the sixth day it rained down double. The people were instructed to gather double portions on that day only. This was because it did not rain down on the seventh day. The seventh day was the day that the people were to rest with God. God rested from raining down the manna and mankind rested from gathering up all that they needed.
The people of God have always had what they needed.
God has always showed them the best way to live. This is even true in relation to time.
After the Babylonian captivity; God’s calendar was once again restored to the people from the reading of the holy scriptures. The people heard the words they had not ever heard while in captivity (some of them for the first time) and they once again began to keep God’s Holy Days in God’s given calendar.
GOD’S CALENDAR HAS BEEN PRESERVED
Another time ago, the people had been in Egyptian bondage for many, many generations. They too had forgotten God’s calendar. With the manna God brought them back to observing His proper calendar and this same calendar has been in effect on the Hebraic calendars every day since the days in the wilderness. The Hebraic people have properly recorded time as God intended; though many men from many cultures have tried to change God’s calendar. The Hebraic thinking people have preserved it for us. Even in the times of captivity; God’s faithful have kept His calendar. For instance; Daniel, though living in Babylon; observed the Sabbath and the Holy Days of God.
This must surely make God smile!
It definitely shows Him honor and respect.
MAJOR DIFFERENCE OF GOD’S CALENDAR COMPARED TO MAN’S CALENDARS
The major difference in God’s calendar and the calendar that different groups of men have tried to implement is that one calendar (God’s) follows the phases of the moon, and one calendar (man’s) follows the phases of the sun.
Since God’s calendar goes by the phases of the moon, this is how God taught people to count their days; and He started His days at sunset instead of sunrise. God’s days on God’s calendar are counted from evening till evening (sunset until sunset).
THE OBSERVANCE OF THREE STARS
To determine that sunset is official one should wait until they see three stars in the night sky. The official sighting comes from Jerusalem.
I love that the Jewish people are still doing this.
The sighting of the first three stars of the evening so clearly speaks to me. When I approach this theory from a Christian perspective it is obvious that the three stars are speaking symbolically of God the Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit.
Christians can look up in the sky and know that our Three-In-One God is joining us for the Sabbath rest when we see the first three stars of the evening of the seventh day!
THERE ARE MANY SIMILAR JEWISH TRADITIONS THAT SPEAK TO CHRISTIANS OF THE TRINITY
Almost every Jewish tradition can go deeper than a first-glance-knowing for showing shadows of Jesus to Christians.
One day we know our brothers will believe in Messiah along with us.
It is their traditions that have so richly pointed Him out to us and proven that He is The Messiah!
Because the phases of the moon are different in different seasons (sometimes longer and sometimes shorter) the way the days fall on the calendar of God vary from year to year.
HOW THE CALENDAR WORKS FOR PASSOVER
If you are looking at a Hebraic calendar and wanting to understand when a Holy Day begins; you will notice that it BEGINS on sunset of the night before the day of the Holy Day. So as we approach Passover; Passover will begin at sunset. The first two days are appropriate for holding a Seder meal in your home. Jerusalem only observes the Seder on the first day.
We follow that same practice in our home.
We observe the first day of Unleavened Bread on the next day; so this day is also considered a very important Holy Day, and it is part of the Passover week.
So in 2021 the family Seder for Passover would began on Saturday evening, March 27th at sunset.
All of the next day until sunset happened again was the first day of Passover.
PASSOVER LASTS A WHOLE WEEK
A lot of times people think that the day of the Seder is all there is to Passover. This isn’t correct. Passover contains The observance of the Passover Celebration, The Seven Days of Unleavened Bread following right after that first day observance of Passover and the time of Early First Fruits tucked in the middle of the seven days of Unleavened bread on the 2nd day of Unleavened Bread, the 3rd day of the Passover Week.
So actually Passover is a season of eight days in all; the day of the Seder meal called Passover, and the 7 Days of Unleavened Bread that follow. Tucked within the seven days of Unleavened Bread is the day of Early First Fruits. Christians that celebrate Passover and Unleavened Bread come to realize that the 3rd day of Passover week (Early First Fruits) is symbolic of the Resurrection of Christ; and we celebrate this day more fully than the Jewish people who do not yet believe in Messiah.
All of these days are counted from sunset to sunset. They each begin and end at sunset.
LOOKING AT THE MONTHS OF THE HEBRAIC CALENDAR
The Passover usually happens in the month of Nisan on the Hebraic calendar. This usually corresponds with our March or April on the secular calendar the world uses today.
The Hebraic months are Nisan, Iyar, Sivan, Tammuz, Av, Elul, Tishri, Heshvan, Kislev, Tevet, Shevat and Adar. Twelve months that are calculated by the phases of the moon instead of the rising of the sun. If you study the scriptures carefully you will find there is something about each of these months that reflect the history of God’s people that will teach us better ways about how to love God and love our fellowman. Because the words are Babylonian that name the months, the scriptures usually use numbers instead of words. The same applies to days.
MANY NEW YEARS
The sacred year begins in Nisan. It originally was scheduled on Tishri 1; but when God was leading the Children of Israel out of bondage from Egypt; He changed the beginning of the year to Nisan. The civil year is still calculated from Tishri 1 though. This first day of Tishri is symbolic of the first day of creation. The civil new year and the sacred new year occur on different calendar dates. The civil years were usually used in calculating the reign of kings and kingdoms. The civil days were used for governing and governments as well as some agricultural traditions; and the sacred calendar and days were used for sacred religious events, such as Sabbath and God’s Holy Days.
There are several new year beginnings on the Hebraic calendar. There is a beginning of the sacred year. There is a beginning of the civil year and there is a beginning for agricultural things. An example would be what we have come to call the new year for the trees. These new year beginnings; (usually according to the purpose of something) happen on different dates instead of the same date for everything. So you might say that when you are thinking Hebraic; there are several new year passages to consider according to the subject. You have a different calendar cycle for governing. You have a different calendar cycle for sacred days of worship. You have a different calendar for planting and harvesting crops. They all have their own annual beginning dates, which are different and unique.
HEBRAIC SEASONS
The Hebraic calendar has four distinct seasons; just as the secular calendar does. They are the same: Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter.
The Spring Season brings God’s Holy Days of Spring:
Passover, (To know more click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/seasons-passover/ )
Unleavened Bread, (To know more click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/seasons-why-do-we-keep-the-seven-days-of-unleavened-bread/ )
Early First-Fruits (To know more click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/seasons-celebrating-early-first-fruits-during-passover-week-in-gods-spring-holy-days/)
Pentecost (This day ALWAYS occurs 50 days after Passover)(To know more about Pentecost; click here:https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/pentecost/ )
After we have finished with Pentecost; the season of Summer has no more holy days. Many of us call these “growing days” because they feel like days that we can live out what we have learned in the other seasons. Depending on when the phases of the moon fall; there are occasional years when Pentecost will fall into the summer months instead of the Spring.
FALL BRINGS GOD’S FALL HOLY DAYS
The Feast of Trumpets (To know more; click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/the-feast-of-trumpets-2017-rosh-hashanah-from-a-christian-perspective-seasons/)
The Day of Atonement (To know more; click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/a-christian-observance-of-yom-kippur-the-day-of-atonement-seasons/)
The Feast of Tabernacles (To know more; click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/feast-of-tabernacles-christian-sukkot/)
THE WINTER SEASON BRINGS TWO POST-MOSAIC HOLIDAYS
Purim (To know more click here: https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/how-to-celebrate-purim/)
Hanukkah (To know more click here: ( https://theinseasonlifestyle.com/becoming-a-light-bearer-series-part-one-exploring-the-history-and-the-mystery-of-hanukkah/)
THE HOLY DAYS ARE ALSO CALLED SABBATHS
In the Hebraic way of thinking a Sabbath is a day spent resting and visiting with God by pondering the Holy Scriptures. This happens both on the Sabbath and on the seasonal Holy Days. Because this is true; the Holy Days are also called Sabbaths. You might hear someone referring to observing the Sabbath (a day of rest with God) in the middle of the week, or on another day of the week. They would most likely be speaking of keeping a holy day and not the regular weekly Sabbath.
POST-MOSAIC HOLIDAYS WERE DECLARED BY MEN; BUT THEY CELEBRATE GOD’S DELIVERANCE
These last two days (Hanukkah and Purim) are not commanded days; but they witness to the significance of God’s love for His people and most people love to join in their celebrations; because they are days that have made the other days possible.
Twice God’s people have miraculously survived under impossible circumstances. These are not the only times the Jewish people have survived extinction in history; but we know we have a Messiah because these days did not wipe out the Jewish nation. The Purim celebration and the celebration of Hanukkah could be considered symbolic of ALL times in history that miracles from God saved God’s chosen people.
So if you have had trouble understanding God’s calendar; that is the basics of it in simple layman’s terms from a person who believes in Messiah and celebrates each day.
SEASONS AND TIMES OF COUNTING DAYS
There are seasons of counting that are observed too, such as the time of Elul that counts the days up to the Fall Holy Days and the days that have come to be called “The Counting of The Omer” with a system that is used to count the 50 days from Passover to Pentecost each spring.
If you are not following God’s calendar and you are following man’s calendar; your seasons of counting will never work out right. In some years, you will find yourself counting to the Resurrection (the time of Early First Fruits) before the remembrance of the crucifixion (the time of Passover) which would not be logical at all.
You can’t have a Resurrection until you have had a Passover. It just isn’t logical to the Messianic believer!
The world however, continues to do this year after year without realizing that God gave us an accurate way of keeping time right from the beginning.
GOD WILL SET US STRAIGHT IN DUE TIME
Eventually God always corrects how the people keep time; and He brings them back to His calendar. As long as God allows time to continue this pattern will present itself whenever God feels it is appropriate. I suspect this may happen next at the time of the return of Christ in the Millennial rule.
Time will tell!
PROPHETIC SIGNIFICANCE OF GOD’S CALENDAR
Once you get this calendar of God set firmly in your mind and heart; you will begin to see prophetic patterns in the meanings of the days.
The Holy Days are one of God’s greatest teaching tools.
They unravel and reveal many truths for us to know which we would not normally understand. The symbolic meanings of these days actually tell the Gospel of Jesus Christ. You must observe them in order to see this. The realization builds over time. The more you observe the Holy Days the deeper you understanding becomes.
I hope this makes the Hebraic calendar easier for you to understand; and I hope you can keep the days because they always make your joy cup fill up and run over. That always spills out and splashes others with God’s love.