Category Archives: Holy Days

Passion Week – Day #3

Posted on April 1, 2023 | Comments Off on Passion Week – Day #3

Shabbat Shalom!

None of the four gospels mentions the weekly Sabbath before the crucifixion. It fits the timeline to place the clearing of the temple on the Sabbath for the following reasons. Traditional understanding places the crucifixion on Friday (hence, Good Friday), but John (12:1) states that six days before the Passover (which would make it the Sabbath), Yeshua and His disciples traveled to Bethany. That was after their stay in Jericho. The distance between the two is roughly 15 miles, too far for travel on the Sabbath. (cf. Acts 1:12, a Sabbath day’s journey from the Mount of Olives to Jerusalem, a distance of fewer than two miles.) Also, a meal was given upon their arrival in Bethany. While it is not forbidden to entertain guests and relax with friends on the Sabbath, Leviticus 23:3 says that no work is to be done. This includes preparing food. When God sent manna, He instructed them to gather twice as much as they needed on the sixth day and prepare it to be kept for the Sabbath (Exodus 16:21-26). No gathering or cooking was to be done on the day of rest. So, unless Mary, Martha, and the others in Bethany knew that Yeshua and His disciples were coming on the Sabbath, they wouldn’t have been able to cook anything by the Sabbath command. So, it seems unlikely that they traveled to Bethany on the Sabbath. The NIV Study Bible places their arrival on Friday and then says there is no mention of the Sabbath in the account, but concludes that Yeshua observed the Sabbath at Lazarus’ house and then journeyed to Jerusalem for the Triumphal Entry the next day on Sunday. There are two problems with this rendition. First, if the crucifixion were on Good Friday, the arrival in Bethany on the previous Friday would be seven days before Passover, not six as recorded in John. Secondly, John 12:12 says it was the next day that Yeshua rode the donkey into Jerusalem. If the arrival in Bethany were on Friday, the Triumphal Entry would have to be Saturday, not Sunday. The timing doesn’t fit. It’s more plausible for the Triumphal Entry to be on Friday, leaving the clearing of the temple on the Sabbath. Having said all that, let’s begin.

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Passion Week – Day #2

Posted on March 31, 2023 | Comments Off on Passion Week – Day #2

John records that the next day following His stay in Bethany, where they had a meal and Mary anointed Him with oil, Yeshua made His way into Jerusalem (John 12:12). Matthew, Mark, and Luke all record that Yeshua came to Bethphage at the Mount of Olives, and there, He sent two unnamed disciples on to fetch a donkey and her colt that had never been ridden (Matt. 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-10, Luke 19:28-40). From there, Yeshua rode the colt into town. You know the story. People started laying their cloaks on the ground while others cut branches from the trees (Matt. 21:8), or from the fields (Mark 11:8). Luke only records the cloaks being laid down (Luke 19:36) with no mention of branches. Also, John is the only account to record that it was palm branches that were laid down (John 12:13).

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Passion Week – Day #1

Posted on March 30, 2023 | Comments Off on Passion Week – Day #1

Since the raising of Lazarus, Yeshua had left the region of Jerusalem because the Sanhedrin had sought to kill Him.  Those that had gone to Jerusalem prior to the Passover for the period of cleansing were looking for Yeshua and not finding Him (John 11:55-57).  As we saw Wednesday, Yeshua and His disciples had gone to Ephraim and stayed, and then traveled, or stayed, in Jericho on their way back to Jerusalem.  John is the only one that records Yeshua going to Bethany first (John 12:1-8) where there was a feast given for Him.  Martha helped serve the meal.

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Passion Week – Day #0

Posted on March 29, 2023 | Comments Off on Passion Week – Day #0

Passion Week begins with Palm Sunday, this coming Sunday, April 2nd.  But a lot that happened leading up to the Triumphal Entry gets overlooked as though it doesn’t have a connection to the crucifixion. For instance, the raising of Lazarus. Is there a connection? Let’s look.

The Messiah returned to Bethany before going into Jerusalem, but He had been gone from Jerusalem for a while. There are a few things to tell about His return that we’ll lump into this post.  We’ll call this “day zero.”  Wednesday.

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What is Passion Week?

Posted on March 28, 2023 | 1 comment

Surely you have heard of Mel Gibson’s movie “The Passion of the Christ.” The title comes from the idea that the Messiah was so passionate about His mission that nothing would stop Him from going to the cross. Passion Week is the cumulation of days during the week of the crucifixion, starting with the Triumphal Entry commonly known as Palm Sunday, and going through until Ressurection Sunday which everyone knows as Easter. But is it really a week long? Or longer? Or is it just a tradition of the Church? We’re going to look at each day leading up to the cross and beyond as it’s recorded in the Gospels. Let’s go.

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Is This the New Year?

Posted on March 24, 2023 | 1 comment

Exodus 12:2 “This month will mark the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year for you.”

In the Exodus story, God tells Moses that THIS MONTH will be the first month of the year. That would seem to indicate that they were keeping a different calendar before this time. Of course, all of the Israelites alive then would have been born and raised as a slave in Egypt, so it would make sense that they followed the Egyptian calendar. And the Egyptian calendar is an interesting one with only three seasons. Actually, they had three calendars each based on the sun, moon, and agricultural seasons, but the beginning of the year may not be what you would expect.

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Happy Rosh Chodesh!

Posted on March 22, 2023 | Comments Off on Happy Rosh Chodesh!

The new moon begins the 1st month of the new year. It’s two weeks until Passover!

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To Feast, Or Not To Feast.

Posted on October 10, 2022 | Comments Off on To Feast, Or Not To Feast.

The general consensus today is that the feasts of God are not for the New Testament church. The most common reasons cited are that they are Jewish feasts and that Jesus fulfilled the feasts so we don’t have to observe them. But are either of those reasons true? Scripture has the answer.

Leviticus 23:37 “These are the appointed feasts of YHWH, which you shall proclaim as times of holy convocation, for presenting to YHWH food offerings, burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings, each on its proper day.”

God declared that they are HIS FEASTS. To call them Jewish feasts is to dishonor God and His declaration. And if they are God’s feasts, then that begs the question of who are the feasts for? The answer is simple. God gave them as gifts for His people. Notice that He called them the APPOINTED feasts of YHWH. An appointment is an arrangement to meet someone at a particular time and place. In this case, it’s a time to meet with God. Why wouldn’t His people want to meet with God at the appointed times?

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The Feast of Tabernacles

Posted on October 9, 2022 | Comments Off on The Feast of Tabernacles

I find this picture to be amusing. But accurate.

For all of those who are participating in the Feast, have a very blessed eight days.

Leviticus 23:33-36 “And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the people of Israel, saying, On the fifteenth day of this seventh month and for seven days is the Feast of Booths to the LORD. On the first day shall be a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work. For seven days you shall present food offerings to the LORD. On the eighth day, you shall hold a holy convocation and present a food offering to the LORD. It is a solemn assembly; you shall not do any ordinary work.'”

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Happy Yom Kippur!

Posted on October 4, 2022 | Comments Off on Happy Yom Kippur!

Leviticus 23:27
“Now on the tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. It shall be for you a time of holy convocation, and you shall afflict yourselves and present a food offering to the LORD.”

Leviticus 23:32
“It shall be to you a Sabbath of solemn rest, and you shall afflict yourselves. On the ninth day of the month beginning at evening, from evening to evening shall you keep your Sabbath.”

Yom Kippur begins at sundown on October 4, 2022.

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