RESURRECTION AND JUBILEE ARE COMING!
The whole world has been in the middle of a very busy, stressful time.
There is so much going on in our homes, churches, communities, and the world as a whole.
Struggles are everywhere. Pandemic and disease have plagued us for two years. Corruption in government is killing us, there are wars and rumors of wars. Famine looms on the horizon, and many fear financial ruin.
Do not fear little flock. Remember the words of Our LORD. He told us to trust him and not to fear. Christ is our Salvation. He will help us to overcome the world.
It is time to slow down and realize the season.
REALIZE THE SEASON
Resurrection Day is coming!
In all the symbolism of the season; as I have taught little children for years now; we have been waiting on our King to come. This is our hope and never has it been more relevant than today.
The ancient people waited on Him to come for the first time. We wait on His soon coming return.
How are we so sure He will return?
He rose from the grave on the third day!
ON THE THIRD DAY
It all happened on the third day after Passover.
He was in the grave for 3 days and 3 nights, beginning on the first day after Passover, as He left the Last Supper (a Passover Seder meal that He shared with His disciples before He suffered death for them.) On that next day He was tried, sentenced and hung on a cruel and terrifying cross. He did it willingly; for all of us.
Jesus didn’t have to die for us.
He chose to do this because He loved us that much.
Three days later; on the 3rd day of Unleavened Bread of the Passover week, the day known to the ancients as Early First Fruits; Jesus rose from the grave. His Resurrection proved our Salvation sure. No One but The Only Begotten Son of God could have accomplished such a task.
IT WAS FINISHED
The cross was the culmination of the work of Christ on this earth. He had a few more things to do; and He would Ascend to God’s Throne in Heaven and take His rightful place at the right hand of God.
So at our house; we celebrate Early First Fruits as Resurrection Day.
He has eternal life and he has offered it to us.
Jesus promised us that the Kingdom of Heaven which we have hoped for during all of these thousands of years is coming!
The Resurrection of Christ assured us of all of this and so much more.
The ancients knew of a coming Messiah/King and they were waiting on him to arrive also.
But no one really understood.
THE COMING KINGDOM OF HEAVEN
He was coming as a King; but not that kind of King.
Jesus refused Satan’s offer to be ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth if it meant bowing down to him.
Why would God’s very own Son need to bow down to anyone?
But; he was humble and meek and he came riding on a donkey which symbolized to that waiting culture that he came in peace.
He came to come close to people.
Jesus came to love people.
He came to bring freedom from bondage, disease, sin and suffering. Our King came to us; and he died for us; and on Resurrection Day (The Day of Early First Fruits) HE ROSE AGAIN!
DON’T MIX THE SACRED WITH THE PAGAN
I don’t use the word ‘Easter’; and I celebrate the Resurrection of Christ three days after the Passover on The Day of Early First Fruits, because that is as close as I can come to the original date.
Easter is a pagan word. You can’t find it in your bible anywhere.
The ruler named Constantine changed the celebration of Early First Fruits which the people of God had always kept and celebrated in the spring harvest. Constantine decided and commanded the Roman church that this day be called Easter. It was a political move by a politician to unite the people under his rule; so that he could be known as ruler of the world. (Remember how Satan promised Jesus if he would bow down and worship Him he could have the kingdoms of the earth? Constantine was temped in just the same way and gave in.)
He claimed to be a Christian; but he denied the true Sabbath (and he even punished people for keeping it.) He rearranged true dates and times. One of those dates he rearranged was to make the date of Easter be the date for celebrating Resurrection. As for me and my house; I’m staying with the dates Jesus kept and not changing to Constantine’s calendar for holy event celebrations.
I don’t conform to politicians in today’s world; why would I want to join in with one who is dead and gone and who was so terribly wrong with his arrogant ambitions?
DIFFERENT DATES FOR RESURRECTION
So by the time the calendar of the world usually turns to Easter Sunday; I will have already celebrated the annual Day of remembering The Resurrection of Christ. It rarely falls on the same day as the world’s celebration of Resurrection. The world will always celebrate this date on a Sunday when it actually fell on a weekday.
This is such a misunderstood concept. Even the best teachers whom I can agree with on so much of the Gospel truths, fail to realize that the Resurrection of Christ didn’t happen on Sunday and the calendar for remembering it isn’t usually Sunday. How some get the celebration of Unleavened Bread, Passover and First Fruits, then turn around and celebrate the day as Easter Sunday is beyond my understanding; but most people fall into that place today.
Don’t misunderstand this; I DO believe all of these churches are earnestly celebrating the Resurrection of Christ; I just think they have the date wrong. The scriptures say “My people suffer for lack of knowledge.” (Hosea 4:6.) I don’t want to be like Constantine and go changing God’s calendar. I keep the original (as close as is possible in this chaotic world.) I want to honor God with truth; as close as I can get to truth and still be a human.
HOPE OF THE SECOND COMING
On Early First Fruits I celebrate the Resurrection of Christ. I also hope for His Second Coming.
The scriptures clearly tell us that no one but the Father knows the date and the time of the return of Christ; so I would never be one of those arrogant date-setters who defies scripture and sets a date; but it is hopeful, for this year as in every year.
This year I am especially hopeful because so many important matters have lined up together at the same time.
As the Israelites were first entering the Promised Land, God commanded that every seventh Sabbath, or forty-ninth year, a trumpet should be sounded on The Day of Atonement.
Count off seven Sabbath years – seven times seven years – so that the seven Sabbath years amount to a period of forty-nine years. Then have the trumpet sounded everywhere on the tenth day of “the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement sound the trumpet throughout your land. Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all of its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you. (Leviticus 25:8-10)
FOLLOWING GOD’S CALENDAR
If you were following God’s calendar last Day of Atonement; you knew that the trumpet on the Day of Atonement was announcing that the Jubilee was coming! On that day when the trumpet sounded everything on the earth was being consecrated for The Year of Jubilee. The new year following that last Day of Atonement begins The Year of Jubilee. The new year of the Hebraic calendar for sacred things begins with the month of Nisan.
At one time the new year’s beginning was Tishrei; and some new things still happen then (the civil things) but God told Moses to change the beginning of the year to Nisan. That is when the sacred things change into a new year on God’s calendar. What could be more sacred than Resurrection and Jubilee?
INTERESTING COINCIDENCE?
This year (2022), the first month of the sacred year called Nisan begins on the Gregorian calendar date of April 15th; which also happens to be the date for celebrating Passover.
Here we see such an interesting coincidence. The Year of Jubilee (the time that represents freedom for God’s people) begins on Passover (the day that God’s people celebrate their freedom from slavery and bondage.)
This year brings a very special kind of joyful celebration. It is also the same day as the beginning of The Year of Jubilee. This happens only every 50 years!
With the year of Jubilee, we are going into a time of total dependence on God for our provision. It is a time celebrating the fact that He will free us from our earthly cares and bring us into a life that is lived from His heavenly perspective; and that includes the joyful celebration of the freedom of Resurrection.
With so many significant facts intersecting at Passover this year; we are surely in for an amazing time of observance.
A YEAR OF CELEBRATION OF FREEDOM
So; when the Easter people start celebrating Resurrection their way; I will just keep on celebrating. Resurrection and Jubilee can be celebrated throughout the whole year.
It may seem ironic to some that in a time of total lack of worldly freedom and unrest; we will be celebrating the freedom of Resurrection and Jubilee. It isn’t ironic at all from God’s perspective; He sees the beginning from the end. The things we celebrate today will lead us into that place of freedom and joy. This is something that the world doesn’t understand and they can’t take it away from us. There is so much freedom in God’s way of life. It is full of Resurrection and Jubilee.
It would not be out of the realm of possibility for Christ to return just in time to celebrate Resurrection and Jubilee with us!
TRUSTING AND BELIEVING
When Jesus arrived on earth the first time he came in the form of a child. The child grew into a man who walked the desert and crossed the Jordan River, just like the people of old.
He did such amazing things!
Jesus did his work well and completely as he walked on earth. He healed people. Jesus loved people. He told people parables about The Kingdom of Heaven.
His final work was to die on the cross and to bear our sins away.
No one could believe that the One they thought would be the King and Messiah had died on a cross.
They were all so sad.
But they loved him and they took his body to the cave of a rich man for burial. They left him there until after the High Holy Day was over; then the women went out to anoint His body, but He wasn’t there!
They told the twelve and they looked for him everywhere.
TELLING THE STORY TO OTHERS
Then Mary saw Him in the garden!
He was alive again!
She ran to tell the others.
Someone saw him on the road. They talked to him but did not recognize Him until He broke bread with them.
In the breaking of the bread they recognized Him and knew that Jesus had risen from the dead. Then He showed his nail scared hands to Thomas and any who had doubted before they became a believer.
He was alive again!
Jesus had risen from the grave!
They all were filled with wonder and amazement. For the next 40 days he walked with them and talked with them.
They began to remember the things that He had told them before.
Everything that he had said had happened.
CELEBRATING EARLY FIRST FRUITS
This is what we will celebrate on Early First Fruits, on the third day after the Passover. We are celebrating the fact of The Resurrection of Christ; who became the first of God’s harvest of mankind.
Jesus was the Early First Fruits of the harvest.
He was the first One to become ripe with eternal life.
The ancients had celebrated Early First Fruits for years and years before He arrived to explain the full meaning.
Until AFTER the Resurrection they did not fully understand.
Year after year, they had brought the first and the best of their crops to God and they had counted for 50 more days until the wheat harvest would come afterward. We are doing the same; during the Passover week. That is when we will begin counting the Days till Pentecost just as He asked us to do. He wanted us to wait and count until something new happened.
So every year we do this all over again.
We notice the day He rose from the grave and gave us TRUE freedom; much more freedom than we received merely from the relief of the bondage of slavery. This freedom lasts forever and we are so thankful and joyful that it does.
CELEBRATING JUBILEE WITH RESURRECTION
This significance sinks in further this year as we also celebrate the beginning of The Year of Jubilee. No matter what the world wants to give us; in Christ was have abundant freedom. We must keep remembering this and practice it in our hearts, hands and feet.
And guess what?
When the 50 days are up; at the time called Pentecost; WE ARE THE WHEAT HARVEST.
One day God will separate the wheat from the tares.
When Jesus was walking the earth and doing his work well; this story was one of the parables He told. All of the parable stories are true. We are to learn from them. One lesson we have learned is that God’s people are the wheat harvest!
WE ARE THE WHEAT HARVEST
We are the LATTER First Fruits of Resurrection.
All of God’s Latter First Fruits will rise from the dead one day; only our time has not yet come.
Will it happen this Year of Jubilee?
Only the Father knows.
It has been made possible because He came before us. When the Early First Fruits harvest came in; the people looked forward to the Latter Fruit harvest. If one season had produced chances were pretty positive that the next harvest of that year would produce also. So they counted the days with anticipation.
We also count our days with anticipation.
We praise God for sending Jesus to us and we praise Jesus for becoming our Passover Lamb who was slain for the remission of our sins.
JUBILEE HAPPENS WITH PASSOVER
At Passover this year, we will turn the page onto a new and fresh sacred year. Jubilee is going to happen. With The Year of Jubilee God will grant us rest. He will provide for us. Just as He provided the miracle of Resurrection; He will provide the miracle of overcoming.
Spring has sprung in all of it’s bright colors and loveliness.
As Spring approaches we will begin cleaning and cleaning our houses and gathering up the things that one needs to present a Passover dinner at home.
We will once again journey to Egypt and out again with the coming of The Passover Seder. The celebration of Passover shows and teaches us the Old Testament meaning of Passover. For the next days past the Passover, we will eat unleavened foods and remember all the reasons why we do so.
As The First day of Unleavened Bread has been celebrated with convocations all over the earth; the Third Day will approach. It is the day of Early First Fruits, the first of the rising of the sacred souls of Heaven’s Kingdom. The life of Jesus, his living and dying and coming again have shown us the New Testament side of the Passover. It also shows us the truth and freedom of Jubilee.
Jesus Christ has risen from the grave!
Hallelujah!
KEEP WAITING FOR OUR KING
We are waiting for a King, and his going and his coming again.
All will celebrate the day that He was risen from the grave!
Early First Fruits is the day we get to say:
“Hallelujah! He is Risen;
He is risen indeed!