Jesus prophetically fulfilled the four Spring Feasts in amazing detail and now we will look at the Fall Feasts which starts with Rosh Hashanah, the Feast of Trumpets (Lev. 23: 23-25). Jewish tradition believes this was the birth day of creation. The Feast begins on the first day of the seventh month and calls the people to prepare their hearts; as this is the Jewish calendars most holy month. It also was the end of one agricultural year and the beginning of a new one; but more important how will Jesus show up in this Feast?
I believe Jesus will once again usher in a major prophetic event when the last trumpet is blown as the Apostle Paul declares in I Cor. 15:52. I eluded earlier in my blog that I strongly believe the Trumpet Feast correlates with the bodily Resurrection of all believers who have died and the simultaneous Rapture of those who are alive at His coming. We will explore this in detail in this teaching.
Sound doctrine is formulated when we take all Scriptures references to a particular topic and once we have evaluated the entire landscape then we can come to clarity with the help of the Holy Spirit. When it comes to the doctrine of the Resurrection/Rapture there are clear sign posts we must pay attention too.
First Sign Post: In Matt. 24:29-31, Mark 13:24-27, Luke 21:25-28
Most theologians would agree these passage are referring to the Rapture. Jesus clearly tells us when the event will happen “Immediately after the tribulation of these days”.
Second Sign Post: From the same passages above Jesus declares there will be tremendous and terrifying events in the heavens just before He comes back Matt. 24: 29b. Also read Revelation 8: 6-13 which describes four of the seven Trumpet Judgments and we can see the clear parallel. Both show intense judgement as hail, fire, a huge meteor is thrown into the sea, stars are falling to the earth, and a third of the sun, moon and stars are darkened.
Third Sign Post: Jesus, two Angels and the Apostle Paul all tell us He will appear in the heavens with great power and glory; and on a cloud when He returns for His Bride! Mark 13:26, Acts: 1:9-10; I Thes. 4:16-17; Rev.14: 14-15. All of these passages describe the same event with King Jesus coming in the clouds to gather His Saints from the four winds.
Fourth Sign Post: Another significant sign post is the “Trumpet Blast” being blow as the Lord declared and Paul specifically tells us it will be the “Last Trumpet”. Matt. 24:31, I Thes. 4:16, Rev. 10:7, Rev. 11:15. It is important to note there can be no “Last Trumpet” without prior trumpet blasts and this would line up exactly with what John saw with the “Seven Trumpet Judgments”. During the Feast of Trumpets a series of 100 shofar soundings are heard and the final one is called the “Tekiah Gedolah” or “the Last Trumpet”. Paul being a Jewish scholar knew exactly when the Lord’s return would come at some point in the future, on the final day at the “Last Trumpet” of Rosh Hashanah.
John tells us what the Angel declared to him in Rev. 10:7 “but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled. Just as he announced to his servants the prophets”. John also wrote in relation to this same seventh and final trumpet what would occur, “Then the seventh angel blew the trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever”. The gathering of His saints at the end of the Tribulation period would be the great mystery of God fulfilled and shortly after the “Marriage Supper” He will return with His bride to judge the Antichrist, the False Prophet and wicked Nations who received his mark and worshiped him.
Fifth Sign Post: At Jesus first coming it was announced by the Arch Angel Gabriel to Mary that she would give birth to the Son of the Most High. Luke 1:26-38. On the very day of His birth in Bethlehem again an Angel appears and announces to the shepherds, “Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord”. Luke 2: 9-15. Multiples of Angels follow in this celebration. Whenever God is doing a BIG THING in His Eternal Plan of Salvation He sends forth His Angels to partake in these exciting and glorious events. We see the exact same pattern when Jesus returns to resurrect His children and rapture those who are still alive at His appearing.
Matt. 24:31, I Thes. 4:16, Rev. 11:15-18, Rev. 14:14-16. The return of Christ for His bride is described with complete participation of the Arch Angel Gabriel blowing the trumpet loudly, great shouts of angles and the harvesting or gathering of His elect from the four winds. Matt. 13: 30, we must also remember that Jesus is also the Lord of the Harvest. What a glorious day this will be as all of heaven rejoices and we His Bride are finally reunited with our Dear Lord and Savior and thus fulfilling all that was prophesied. John tells us in Rev. 11:18 “The Nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged (resurrection) and for the rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.
Believers will be removed from the earth at the end of the seventh trumpet, and we will NOT partake in the FULL UNRESTRAINED WRATH of GOD that will be unleashed in the final SEVEN BOWL JUDGMENTS. The full wrath of God is reserved for the Antichrist and those who received the mark of the beast and worshiped the greatest deceiver of all human history. There is no more mention of Christians on the earth during the “Bowl Judgments” Rev. 15: 5-16: 1-21. Rev. 17 and 18 describe in great detail the judgment of the "Great Prostitute and her wicked false religious system" and the "Fall of Mystery Babylon and it corrupt global economic system".
John see's a great host of believers who came out of the Tribulation, and Revelations 15: 2b tells us “and also those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of his name, standing beside the sea of glass with harps of God in their hands” partaking in a great heavenly worship service. After the Marriage Supper of the Lamb Rev. 19: 6-10, and we who have followed the Lamb faithfully will return with Christ to the earth for the greatest and most destructive war in human history…the Battle of Armageddon Rev. 19: 11-21! Once I complete this “Seven Feasts of God” series we will look into the prophesied WARS that are yet to soon come.
In conclusion, many of you may be fearful or unhappy that we as Christians will have to go through the majority of the Tribulation period. I understand, yet God will pour out His Holy Spirit and give us grace to endure, and as Jesus said, “he who endures till the end, shall be saved”. We need to make a resolute decision that we will remain faithful to our Lord and even if that means laying down our lives for our King. I have had this discussion with my dear wife and friends, and I have made the decision I will not fear what man can do to me. Death is only temporary for the believer and my hope and trust is in the one who both conquered death and sin and I trust this will be your decision as well.
As surely a Jesus profoundly fulfilled the Spring Feasts, we have just witnessed Jesus clearly from the Scriptures glorious appears at the end of Rosh Hashanah. The Feast which is correlated with the saying, “No man knows the day or hour”. I long to hear the glorious loud sound of the Trumpet…the Last Trumpet call of God when He takes us home. Next week we will continue to the most solemn of God’s Seven Feasts, the Day of Atonement.
From a friend, Bill W…if you have found these studies insightful and encouraging pass them on to a friend!