We are Oikos

We are concluding the spring festivals with our message today. Together we have been looking so far at how these festivals point to the work of Jesus Christ. Today we will look at the last Spring Festival. This festival deals with the last work of Messiah’s first coming. The feast of Weeks or Pentecost as we know it.

These days, the work of Messiah, the work of Jesus Christ is all about the faithfulness of God. We can genuinely stop and say you want to know if God is faithful, simply look to Christ. He is the living embodiment of God’s faithfulness. The reason for this particular day was to thank God for a good harvest. These appointed times always remind us of two things.  We have already shared the faithfulness of God, but also, of the fickleness of the heart of man. It’s so easy for us to forget, so God says to do this from generation to generation.

The Feast of First Fruits follows the Feast of Unleavened Bread. In this feast, the Jews would be thankful to the Lord for the harvest He was going to bring. This feast speaks of Jesus’ resurrection. He is the first fruits of the resurrection. The Bible speaks in Daniel, about there being a resurrection of all the dead not just the Messiah or believers. Jesus is the first to rise among all. As we look at this feast we continue to see the clear revelation of God's work for us. His plan for humanity through the work of Jesus Christ.

The Feast of Unleavened Bread follows Passover immediately. It begins the next day and kicks off a feast for seven days. Many Jews refer to this as the 8 days of Passover but only the first day is actual Passover. To understand why the urgency of not allowing the bread to rise we need to look at how bread was made back in Egypt. Baking bread was a laborious task for the Jews, it took a while, it wasn’t like us who just go to the store, and the scriptures tell us that they were essentially getting kicked out of Egypt. There was no time to let the bread rise.

God would use this time to convey a special memorial for the Hebrews. Something that would remind them of God their Savior. During these seven days, they set time apart to remember what God has done, and how He delivered them from bondage. Scriptures are read, which all pertain to the Law and the Passover Lamb – reminding them of the faithfulness of God. This feast is a reminder of their freedom.

Join us as we take a closer look and see how this feast points to Jesus our unleavened bread. The bread that came down from heaven for us to be satisfied. The food we partake of on our journey through this wilderness on the way home, the eternity He has promised us.

Today we will look at an abridged version of the Seder meal we do every year at our church. Passover focuses on the idea of freedom from slavery. God revealed His wonders and glory to free His people from captivity. As believers, we know there is no greater display of God's glory than the cross. At Calvary God revealed His power and glory to free His people from the captivity of sin.

In today's message, we will mainly focus on Christ during our time today instead of the meaning behind every item. Leviticus 23:5  tells us, “The Lord’s Passover begins at sundown on the fourteenth day of the first month."

In Exodus 12 we get the actual details of this feast. We are given over 50 verses outlining the commands for Passover. This is the biggest and most joyous day of the Hebrew calendar. This is a day many of us know because of films like The 10 Commandments and Prince of Egypt, and Good Friday. Let's come together and see how the Lord continues to reveal His plan for us in Christ.

**Music by Bensound (License code: YQM8W4TOEQGTALGU)

Today we will take a look at the gift of the Sabbath. When Jesus walked the earth when asked by the Pharisees about His apostles' transgress against the Sabbath, Jesus replies, "The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath." Jesus reveals the heart and truth about the Sabbath.

The Sabbath is more than a day of rest. It is a break in each week. A reminder that your value and your worth do not come from your work. It comes because of who you are. We must always remember we are the crowning moment of God’s creation, when He creates man for the first time we read it is very good. The Sabbath was made for us to remind us how God feels about us, that He loves us, He values us, and He calls us very good. When we read the text in Genesis, we see the Sabbath day has no evening and no morning.

Genesis 2:2 - 3 By the seventh day God had finished the work He had been doing; so on the seventh day He rested from all His work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy because on it He rested from all the work of creating that He had done.

God’s invitation to you and me is to dwell within His rest, His presence forever. This is the Sabbath found in Jesus the Lord of the Sabbath which lasts forever!

Understanding the Sabbath is crucial for us to understand our life, our walk, and our relationship with Jesus.

**Music by Bensound (License code: YQM8W4TOEQGTALGU)