Posted on 09/09/2007 5:07:34 PM PDT by DouglasKC
You and I may take ordinary road maps for granted, but the history of mapmaking shows that ancient peoples carefully relied on their relatively primitive maps.
Noted author and professor John Noble Wilford wrote: "Before Europeans reached the Pacific, the Marshall Islanders were making stick charts. Sticks were lashed together with fibers to depict prevailing winds and wave patterns; shells or coral were inserted at the appropriate places to represent islands. When a Tahitian communicated his knowledge of South Pacific geography to Captain Cook by drawing a map, it was clear that he and his people were quite familiar with the map idea.
"Pre-Columbian maps in Mexico indicated roads by lines of footprints. Centuries ago Eskimos carved accurate coastal maps in ivory, the Incas built elaborate relief maps of stone and clay, and early Europeans drew sketch maps on their cave walls" (The Mapmakers, 1981, p. 7).
The map idea
According to Wilford, cartographers agree that there is something fundamental about the map idea: "It is a basic form of human communication . . . Indeed, the term map is often used metaphorically to explain other types of knowing and communicating" (p. 13).
Wilford carefully explored the symbolic values of mapmaking: "In everyday conversation, the word map is used to convey the idea of clarification: someone maps out a plan or maps out his future" (ibid.). Later in this book he wrote, "Maps embody a perspective of that which is known and a perception of that which may be worth knowing" (p. 386). He makes a very good case that maps are excellent symbolic tools, communicating that which is so far unknown by that which is known.
But if an ordinary map can communicate a desired destination, could there also be a map for Christians to use to find their ultimate destiny in this life? Is there a plan already mapped out that would determine a sense of here in relation to there? The short answer is yes.
Would Almighty God, who has created the orderly, harmonious and self-regulating universe, create human beings—the only fully cognitive processing creatures on this planet—without planning and/or mapping out an ultimate destiny for us?
Not only is there a biblical map that can assist you in arriving at your ultimate destination, but that map is also the key to your spiritual survival. The map I speak of is both real and symbolic, a great communication tool in the service of humankind.
The Bible's symbolic map
Remarkably, the Scriptures are filled with basic symbolic maps that can and will lead you to true freedom and immortality. Ironically, millions of Christians have neglected to use the very biblical map that God has so freely given to them.
In fact, many mainstream Christians have ignored the basic biblical map leading to salvation and "penciled in" traditional pagan symbols instead. When you misread a map, a miss is as good as a mile.
For example, though God has clearly mapped out our salvation by way of the Holy Days He reveals in the Bible, religionists from time immemorial have changed God's symbols and replaced them with pagan ones. For instance, they have substituted modern religious holidays like Christmas and Easter for God's revelatory Holy Days.
No wonder humankind has consistently run into biblical dead ends or taken frustrating and confusing religious detours—rather than following the road to eternal life (Daniel 7:25). Let's briefly explore God's symbols, His annual Sabbaths in the autumn that mark out and point the way to immortality in God's coming Kingdom.
Our Creator has revealed seven annual festivals starting in the spring, each one depicting some great event in the ongoing mapping of God's salvation for humankind. However, this particular article will focus on and highlight only the four festivals that occur in the late summer and autumn of the year (in the northern hemisphere).
Each represents a decisive turning point in human history. The previous three spring festivals of Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread and Pentecost constitute personal responses to the workings of God in the people He calls and chooses during this age of man. The Bible calls them the firstfruits of God's salvation. (For a fuller discussion of all seven of these annual occasions, request or download our free booklet God's Holy Day Plan: The Promise of Hope for All Mankind.)
The Feast of Trumpets maps the arrival of Jesus Christ
The first autumn festival is the Feast of Trumpets. This biblical festival helps us understand why Jesus Christ must return and reveals how and what He will do when He arrives.
It also reveals what happens to His true followers, both those who are still alive and those who are "dead in Christ," at His coming. Both are transformed immediately to immortal children of God (1 Corinthians 15:22-23, 42-44, 50-53). Jesus gathers His elect (see 1 Thessalonians 4:15-17), who will afterward follow Christ when He descends on the Mount of Olives (Revelation 19:14; John 18:36).
Historically, the Feast of Trumpets was first given to God's nation Israel (Leviticus 23:24). In that context trumpets were, and still are, symbols that indicated an alarm for war. Israel often blew trumpets to alert its army and regular population that battle was imminent. Consider the trumpets that were blown when God instructed Israel to conquer Jericho (Joshua 6). A blowing of trumpets signaled imminent battle.
The book of Revelation likewise shows blowing of trumpets in preparation for Jesus' return. The fulfillment of the Feast of Trumpets is loudly sounded in Revelation chapters 8 through 11 where the seven trumpets of God warn of major cataclysmic events. These trumpet blasts serve as the prelude to the seven last plagues of Revelation 16.
The Feast of Trumpets symbolizes the return of Christ, the most pivotal and well-mapped-out event in all of human history. When Christians celebrate the Feast of Trumpets, they are in a sense acting out in advance a great symbol of their salvation. (If you would like to understand the significance of these biblical prophecies in much greater detail, please request or download our free booklet The Book of Revelation Unveiled.)
The Day of Atonement maps Satan's removal
The Day of Atonement focuses on the future removal of the devil and his cohorts, powerful evil spirits unseen by the naked human eye, called demons. As agents of deception and baleful influence, they have been misleading mankind since the Garden of Eden (see Revelation 12:9).
The fact that many today doubt the existence of evil spirits demonstrates the success of the deception. (For the absolute biblical proof, request or download our free booklet Is There Really a Devil?)
Through the book of Job, Scripture shows that Satan is personally involved with humanity. "And the Lord said to Satan, 'From where do you come?' So Satan answered the Lord and said, 'From going to and fro on the earth, and from walking back and forth on it'" (Job 1:7).
From this and many other biblical passages we see that Satan is intricately involved with humanity at large. Recall that when the devil offered Jesus Christ the kingdoms of the world, Jesus did not counter his rule over mankind. "Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, 'All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me'" (Matthew 4:8-9, emphasis added throughout).
The apostle Paul tells us that Satan is the god of this world and that he has blinded the minds of all humanity (1 Corinthians 4:4). He began his deception with our first parents, Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:1-6; Romans 5:14-15).
Thankfully Satan's destructive work on humankind will cease. Christ will remove the devil from the human realm for a thousand years at His return (Revelation 20:1-3; compare Romans 16:20). This major event is mapped out or symbolized by the Day of Atonement. Christians observe this unique biblical festival by fasting, drawing close to God and acknowledging their total reliance on Him (Leviticus 23:26-32; Acts 27:9).
The reason God is going to remove Satan and the demonic realm from the human sphere is very clear: They are at the heart of all human troubles, pain, suffering, war and death. Without the destroyer, peace can break out on the earth (Isaiah 14:4-7). Only then can humanity continue on the road to God's peace and prosperity.
The Day of Atonement keeps the path open for all humankind to experience the wonderful world tomorrow, the coming Kingdom of God! That time is symbolized by the joyous Feast of Tabernacles, the next stop on the road map to eternal life.
Feast of Tabernacles maps universal peace and prosperity
The Feast of Tabernacles is strongly symbolic of the great destination for humanity on the road to universal peace and prosperity. Yet that destination cannot be reached before the previous ones. There is a specific and orderly sequence of benchmark events that must take place for humankind to arrive safely at its ultimate destination. There are no shortcuts.
By way of a brief review, the Feast of Trumpets heralds the return of Jesus Christ, where He resurrects the dead in Christ and changes those Christians who are still alive (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17; 1 Corinthians 15), and begins to remove all tyrannical governments (Revelation 11:15-18).
The next destination in God's master plan of salvation is the Day of Atonement, where Christ removes Satan and incarcerates him (Revelation 20:1-3). Only then can peace break out on earth (Isaiah 14:7; 11). This leads to the next step as represented by the Feast of Tabernacles, when Jesus will rule as the great Sovereign for 1,000 years.
Today Christ's disciples who understand the meaning of the symbols of God's step-by-step map of salvation keep the annual Feast of Tabernacles in anticipation of mankind's great future.
Throughout the earth, humanity will rejoice in unparalleled peace and prosperity. War, violence, deception, famines and all the other insoluble problems that plague mankind today will disappear from the earth (Isaiah 11:1-9; Micah 4:1-7). This war-weary earth will become a new Garden of Eden, beginning at Jerusalem and then spreading to all nations (Ezekiel 36:35; Zechariah 14:16).
Last Great Day maps salvation for mankind
During the autumn festival season, yet one major event follows the Feast of Tabernacles.
This destination on the biblical map that Christ has revealed to His saints has stupendous meaning. It figuratively shows the destination of all human beings who have ever lived from Adam's time to Christ's second coming.
It's called the Last Great Day, or the eighth day of the Feast. "On the eighth day you shall have a holy convocation . . . It is a sacred assembly, and you shall do no customary work on it" (Leviticus 23:36).
Keep in mind that as an ordinary road map has the appropriate symbols to depict the reality of destinations, so has God given symbols to show the reality of His major goals for humanity.
God's people are instructed to observe the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days, with the first day being a Holy Day (verse 34). Following is a final festival that represents the opportunity for salvation for all human beings who have ever lived not knowing nor really understanding God's truth. This involves a general resurrection to physical life, at which time Jesus Christ and His reigning saints will reveal the true path to salvation.
Let's notice two significant passages that help us understand this symbolic festival. "But the rest of the dead did not live again until the thousand years were finished . . . Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away . . . And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books" (Revelation 20:5, 11-12).
The great white throne judgment described here has several symbolically significant meanings. It's great because of the billions of human beings who will be raised from the dead for their day of salvation. White refers to holiness and righteousness. Throne infers Christ's righteous rule. It's a time of judgment because these human beings are then judged or evaluated by Jesus Christ in mercy and compassion over a period of time (1 Corinthians 11:31-32).
Another notable passage is found in the oft-misunderstood prophecy of Ezekiel 37. The valley of dry bones represents the whole house of Israel, all 12 tribes (not just the Jewish people although they are prominently included), who lived and died with no apparent hope. At this time, Christ will resurrect all human beings, Israelites and gentiles alike, all those who have ever lived and who never really knew God. They will be resurrected to physical life but offered His Spirit and the hope of salvation they never had (Ezekiel 37:11-14).
Though some will ultimately reject God and be lost—destroyed in a lake of fire (Revelation 21:8)—most will embrace Him and His ways, joining the saints in eternal salvation.
Jesus' return symbolized by the fall festivals
John Noble Wilford's quotes about maps certainly ring true when it comes to mapping Christ's return: "Maps embody a perspective of that which is known and a perception of that which may be worth knowing" (The Mapmakers, p. 386). Maps "communicate a sense of place, some sense of here in relation to there" (p. 7).
The four autumn festivals can rightly be compared to great milestones for all of mankind, mapped out in advance by God in His Holy Bible. Each one comes in its own order and proper sequence, just as following an ordinary road map from town to town leads to a physical destination. But with God's map, the end result is the salvation of all humankind.
Most human beings today do not know or understand how to read and study the Bible. During this age of man, God's people are given the understanding to follow His map of the future leading to the coming Kingdom of God and beyond.
The grand ultimate destiny of humanity is to become immortal children of God the Father, younger brothers and sisters of Jesus Christ, living and serving in the New Jerusalem and throughout the universe forever and ever (Revelation 21–22; Hebrews 2:8; Deuteronomy 4:19).
Understanding God's plan and purpose revealed in the pages of the Bible constitutes the map that the people of God now follow in earnest. However, responsibility comes with the God-given ability to read His map of salvation. Those who have the knowledge of God, sprinkled throughout a darkened global society, should rejoice in these festivals and help show the world God's way and His path to salvation for mankind. GN
Because, unlike you and your fellow messianics, and unlike modern Jews, Paul could actually go to the temple and witness firsthand, actual, live biblical rituals straight from the law of Moses, animal sacrifices included. They “are” shadows to him because they still existed in that day and folks could still be trapped in them from recognizing Messiah.
They are no “shadows” today simply because no one is able to keep a Mosaic feast according to strict biblical commands. There are ersatz feasts, shadows of a type, that some folks are enamored with.
You didn't address my points.
These are the hallmarks of what Paul was addressing in Colossians:
Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
The Lord's holy days are NOT philosophy, but scriptural commands of the Lord. The only scripture Paul had was the "old" testament.
They are not "traditions of men", but holy days created by the God of the universe.
They are NOT "rudiments of the world", but holy objects of the divine.
So you're supposition is that Paul was telling Christians NOT to observe the Lord's holy days. He was telling them that observing them was "traditions of men", "rudiments of the world", "vain deceit".
Was his audience stupid??? Weren't you just saying that during Paul's day that the holy days were still a shadow of things to come? That they weren't YET faded away, but would be in 70 AD? If that's so then they weren't celebrating "ersatz" holy days, but Christ created, Christ ordained, scriptural holy days and not "traditions of men", "rudiments of the world", "vain deceit".
Where do you get this?? Instead of simply accepting that Paul celebrated biblical feasts as commanded in the only scripture he had you have to go through this elaborate scenario to project your beliefs back into his life.
They are no “shadows” today simply because no one is able to keep a Mosaic feast according to strict biblical commands. There are ersatz feasts, shadows of a type, that some folks are enamored with.
There are shadows. The sabbath is a weekly shadow of the creation:
Exo 20:11 For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and hallowed it.
The feast of trumpets is a shadow of the return of Christ to establish his kingdom:
Lev 23:24 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation
Rev 8:6 And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign forever and ever.
1Th 4:16 For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first:
Read the article for information about the oth.er holy days
Amen. I agree with your response to DouglasKC. There is no need for us to observe the Jewish holy days, for three reasons:
1. God gave them to the people of Israel. He never commanded Gentiles to observe them, unless they converted to Judaism.
2. Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. When Jesus died on the cross, was buried, and rose from the dead, He abolished the ceremonial law (but not the moral law, which includes the Ten Commandments). [I realize that some of my fellow dispensationalists, and even some non-dispensationalists, will critize me for saying, “but not the moral law.”]
3. The destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D. There is no physical Temple today because of that. Since there is no physical Temple today, there is no need to observe the Jewish holy days. We are under the New Covenant, which Christ ushered in at Calvary. Under the New Covenant, the church is the temple of God (I Cor. 3:16,17; II Cor. 6:16; Eph. 2:19-22; I Peter 2:5).
Paul said that the Jewish holy days “are shadows of things to come” (Col. 2:17). Whether DouglasKC realizes it or not, those “things to come” have come.
Let's look at it again:
Col 2:16 Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of a holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days:
Col 2:17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ.
Now you are interpreting this to say that Paul thinks that the feast days ARE shadows and thus SHOULD NOT be observed by Christians BECAUSE Christ is the reality that cast the shadows so there's no need for shadows...correct?
If this is not correct, what was casting the shadow?
You have been pinged because this may be of interest
to the Sabbatarian/Messianic community. Freepmail
DouglasKC if you want on or off this list.
Add Me Please Remove Me Please
I've started a ping list for sabbatarians, messianics. Let me know if you want on or off....thanks!
Yes, He did give them to "Israel" and where are the "people of Israel" today? They are NOT in the tiny Nation of Israel. Those are two separate entites. God wants His children to observe them and they do not have to convert to Judaism.
Paul said that the Jewish holy days “are shadows of things to come” (Col. 2:17). Whether DouglasKC realizes it or not, those “things to come” have come
Some of us will be in for a big surprise, won't we? We shall see........
.......Ping
Thank you for the ping and please add me to your list.
........Ping-Pong
I did address your point, which was you ignored in immediate context of Col. 2:16,17.
Deal with that before you back up to verse 8. Or deal with them both together.
But to be complete, the greek word for philosophy does not preclude the view of the Jewish traditions and the Mosaic ceremonial law. If those traditions were keeping people in bondage, especially they were being used to oppress gentiles, then they constitute a "philosophy" or vain tradition of men.
I don't normally quote lexicons, but this may be helpful to you:
filosofiva - love of wisdomThe entire tenor of the passage is Jewish, not pagan, e.g., the comparison of circumcision to baptism, the phrase “handwriting of requirements” (Mosaic code), “Let no one cheat you of your reward” (which is exactly what the Judaizers were doing to the gentiles).
used either of zeal for or skill in any art or science, any branch of knowledge. Used once in the NT of the theology, or rather theosophy, of certain Jewish Christian ascetics, which busied itself with refined and speculative enquiries into the nature and classes of angels, into the ritual of the Mosaic law and the regulations of Jewish tradition respecting practical life (Strong's Number 5385; The KJV New Testament Greek Lexicon)
So the context does confirm the reading that Paul was very much concerned about gentile belivers being overcome by Jewish traditions, the traditions of men (Just like today, it was very hard even for Jews to tell where the law stopped and the traditions started, nevermind the gentiles, who often got unknowingly caught up in the illusionary piousness of “lawkeeping”)
It is death to place oneself "under the law".
I wrote:
They way you do things today are “traditions” since you have obviously ignored the “jots and tittles” of Moses’ commandments and replaced them with practices of convenience. (E.g., where does God in His Word allow uncircumcised gentiles into the Passover? Or perhaps your group does not celebrate the “passover” with gentiles present.)Modern messianics, like modern unbelieving Jews, so not follow the “jots and tittles” of the Mosaic code in any way, shape, or form. They follow the vague shadows of that code according to their traditions of men filtered through 2000 years of history. They have radically modified that code to suit the fact that the Jewish temple and priesthood no longer exist and the undeniable circumstances surrounding that fact.
Messianism is the philosophy that is out to step with the Scriptures and the facts of history for the last 2000 years. Jesus Christ has come, and He has established His new covenant with His people, Jews and gentiles together. He has made us into one people, the true sons of Abraham. We are the royal priesthood and holy nation. He has bonded us together with a common spiritual genetics that has nothing to do with are our parents or grandparents. He has freed us from the very code that even the apostle Peter admitted was a yoke-burden that Jews themselves were unable to keep (Acts 15:10). (The same Peter, BTW, who ate and lived like a gentile until the Judaizers appeared in Galatia, and was opposed by Paul for his hypocrisy.)
So the next time you quote Matt. 5:18 against those who see no place for the Mosaic ceremonies in the new covenant, just look carefully at the “jots and tittles” and think about whether you are truly keeping “the least of these commandments” according to God’s Holy revelation or according to your own imagination.
I believe the new testament is inspired scripture. There is an unequivocal Godly action and discussion throughout NT scripture that under the new covenant circumcision is not a requirement to enter into the Israel of God.
Modern messianics, like modern unbelieving Jews, so not follow the “jots and tittles” of the Mosaic code in any way, shape, or form. They follow the vague shadows of that code according to their traditions of men filtered through 2000 years of history. They have radically modified that code to suit the fact that the Jewish temple and priesthood no longer exist and the undeniable circumstances surrounding that fact.
Poppycock. I would say that most messianic groups are well acquainted with the book of Hebrews and know exactly what has been changed in the law and follow that along with the biblical examples in the rest of the NT. Hebrews is pretty clear and it mentions nothing about Christians NOT observing the holy days of Christ, our Lord. Indeed Hebrews specifically says that sabbath keeping (one of the Lord's feasts) is still to be done by Christians:
Heb 4:9 So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.
Messianism is the philosophy that is out to step with the Scriptures and the facts of history for the last 2000 years. Jesus Christ has come, and He has established His new covenant with His people, Jews and gentiles together. He has made us into one people, the true sons of Abraham.
I don't consider myself a messianic jew, but either a natural Israelite or gentile baptized into the body of Christ.
We are the royal priesthood and holy nation. He has bonded us together with a common spiritual genetics that has nothing to do with are our parents or grandparents. He has freed us from the very code that even the apostle Peter admitted was a yoke-burden that Jews themselves were unable to keep (Acts 15:10). (The same Peter, BTW, who ate and lived like a gentile until the Judaizers appeared in Galatia, and was opposed by Paul for his hypocrisy.)
And this is where your confusion lies. You believe obedience to the Lord is forbidden IF the appearance is that the "law" is being kept. You cannot fathom that the indwelling spirit of Christ should lead one to let that spirit LIVE our lives. Christ created HIS own holy days! They ARE his. They were created for a reason that he knows well. He WILL lead us to observe them IF we yield to his will because they benefit us, his creation.
You also tend to confuse non-scriptural tenets and traditions of the Jewish religion with scriptural injunctions. For example, you just said:
"He has freed us from the very code that even the apostle Peter admitted was a yoke-burden that Jews themselves were unable to keep (Acts 15:10). (The same Peter, BTW, who ate and lived like a gentile until the Judaizers appeared in Galatia, and was opposed by Paul for his hypocrisy.)"
Clearly you don't understand that there is nothing in scripture that says Peter couldn't eat and associate with gentiles. But it WAS (and still is in some forms of Judaism) that the very act of being in a gentile house would make you unclean. That's NOT in scripture and that's why Peter was chastised.
How about taking a shot at post 25? I'm still confused about what you believe this is saying.
Interestingly enough Yom Kippur is the only one of the three left that really requires the presence of the High Priest and the Temple ---both of which are on the horizon.
And where in the NT are you commanded by God to set aside Exodus 12:43-45 and eat the “passover” with uncircumcised gentiles?
Poppycock. I would say that most messianic groups are well acquainted with the book of Hebrews and know exactly what has been changed in the law and follow that along with the biblical examples in the rest of the NT.
Obviously they do not if they are still following practices defined by the Levitical priesthood which were only appropriate while the temple was standing in Jerusalem. That system decayed and passed away. You cannot separate the Levitical feasts from the sacrificial system, since there is absolutely no warrant in the Word to do so. That is a late tradition of men, but is denied by the substance of Hebrews.
I don't consider myself a messianic jew, but either a natural Israelite or gentile baptized into the body of Christ.
I do not know what that means.
Clearly you don't understand that there is nothing in scripture that says Peter couldn't eat and associate with gentiles. But it WAS (and still is in some forms of Judaism) that the very act of being in a gentile house would make you unclean. That's NOT in scripture and that's why Peter was chastised.
Actually, you are wrong. Paul says that Peter was living “as a gentile”, not merely with gentiles.
“14 But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before them all, "If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews?” (Gal. 2)
Peter, at least when he was in Galatia, recognized his freedom in Christ to eat or not eat “kosher” as the circumstances dictated (based on his experience in Acts 10). He could live like a gentile if he wished. He was no longer bound by the ceremonial requirements of the Mosaic code. Notice that Paul never chastised Peter for eating gentile food. He opposed him for his hypocrisy when he withdrew from the gentiles at the appearance of the Judaizers from Jerusalem.
What is confusing? Paul is speaking metaphorically, and is using language similar to what we see in places like Heb. 8:5 and 10:1. Just as the earthly temple was a “copy or shadow” ( skiav) of the heavenly, so too the ceremonials were a mere shadow of Christ. Once the true temple of God appeared, then the earthly temple was destroyed by God. The “shadow” of the temple no longer exists (it was obliterated by God in AD70) because the substance (Christ Himself, John 2:16, and the Church; 1 Cor. 3:16,17; 2 Cor. 6:16) has appeared. The same is true of the “shadow” of the ceremonials. The substance, Christ, has appeared so the shadow no longer exists, having been overcome by the glory of His appearing. The copy cannot exist in the presence of the reality.
\ God gave his holy spirit to uncircumcised gentiles. Paul taught:
1Co 5:7 Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
1Co 5:8 Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
So where do you read that we are to forget and ignore the holy days of our Lord?
You cannot separate the Levitical feasts from the sacrificial system, since there is absolutely no warrant in the Word to do so. That is a late tradition of men, but is denied by the substance of Hebrews.
Paul had no problem with it. He recognized that a change in the priesthood didn't mean that you tossed out the whole of the bible. In Hebrews, it was SPELLED out what was changed. The book was written to let early Christians KNOW what the new covenant did. And the fact that it's documented that Paul kept the feasts is evidence enough.
I don't consider myself a messianic jew, but either a natural Israelite or gentile baptized into the body of Christ. I do not know what that means.
I don't consider myself a Jewish person who believes that Christ is the messiah. I'm either a gentile or a natural descendant of Israel who has been baptized into the Israel of God, into the body of Christ.
Actually, you are wrong. Paul says that Peter was living “as a gentile”, not merely with gentiles. “14 But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Peter before them all, "If you, being a Jew, live in the manner of Gentiles and not as the Jews, why do you compel Gentiles to live as Jews?” (Gal. 2)
There was a VAST difference between the ways a Pharasitical Jew lived and the way a gentile lived even without considering food to be eaten. They had, and still have, rules about utensils, kitchens, food preparation, how animals are killed, etc. Kosher rules developed by the Jewish religion covers MUCH more that what is actually in scripture.
Peter, at least when he was in Galatia, recognized his freedom in Christ to eat or not eat “kosher” as the circumstances dictated (based on his experience in Acts 10). He could live like a gentile if he wished. He was no longer bound by the ceremonial requirements of the Mosaic code. Notice that Paul never chastised Peter for eating gentile food.
Again you're mixing up scriptural with non-scriptural. Peter NEVER ate animal flesh that scripture defined as unclean. But the very act of eating a clean animal prepared by a gentile in a gentile home would have been abhorrent to an observant Jew.
The substance, Christ, has appeared so the shadow no longer exists, having been overcome by the glory of His appearing. The copy cannot exist in the presence of the reality.
You're contradicting yourself. So back to "ARE". Christ appeared, was crucified and resurrected at least a decade before Paul wrote Colossians. According to you, the copy (the holy days) NO longer existed. Yet:
Col 2:17 Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ
Paul doesn't buy your explanation.
Bookmarked for later review.
So?? Where did God say that gentiles who are circumcised only in their heart may attend to the “passover”? I do not read that anywhere in the Mosaic code. This seems to be another tradition of men based purely on circumstances.
So where do you read that we are to forget and ignore the holy days of our Lord?
We do not ignore them. We see them as fulfilled perfectly and obediently in Christ. When we celebrate Christ’s work we celebrate all to which the Mosaic feasts pointed.
And we do not pretend that keeping such ersatz feast days as are common today in any way fulfills the command of God. Such pretentiousness has no warrant in Scripture. It is a vain sort of thing based on zeal without knowledge.
So where do you read that we are to forget and ignore the holy days of our Lord?
You seem to be missing the purely spiritual nature of 1 Cor. 5:7,8. First of all, it says that Christ is our Passover. He is the one to Whom the Mosaic Passover pointed. The Mosaic Passover was the shadow and Christ is the substance.
Second, it tells us how to keep this “feast” (i.e., Christ our Passover), with the “unleavened bread of sincerity and truth”. Paul is not speaking at all about the old ceremonies with animal sacrifices and physically unleavened bread. He is speaking spiritually of how we are to approach the throne of Christ. He is our Passover. We do not need to keep the “passover” of men.
We see similar spiritual language by Paul in places like Romans 12:1, “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.”
Peter NEVER ate animal flesh that scripture defined as unclean.
That’s exactly what Paul said he did. You can disagree with Paul if you wish, but his words could not be plainer. Why don’t you deal with the actual text and explain it to us.
Not at all. I’m merely disagreeing with your flawed interpretation of the text at hand. It is quite plain, and try as you might to explain away Paul’s wring in our past about things in his present saying “are”, the substance of Col 2:17,18 stands. Those who follow the Mosaic code and trouble other with the same are living “under the law” and are self-condemned.
Paul lived in a world that we do not live in today. Paul lived in a world caught between two covenants. The old was decayed and fading away, and the new was being established in the Church by the blood of Christ.
Just as Israel wandered in the wilderness as the generation who sinned against God at Sinai were purged, so the generation of Jesus’ contemporary Jews in Judea were being purged. The righteous became Christians and entered into the Body adopting practices consistent with a new nation made up of both Jews and gentiles. The unrighteous were judged for their treatment of the son of the Landowner.
The old covenant system was finally and forever destroyed in AD70 with the destruction of the temple. Those who wish to live by old covenant ways are simply living in the past.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.