Exodus 12:2 This shall be the beginning of your months (GOD speaking to Moses)
Wait a minute – its nearly the end March not January! Of course I realise this is March and not the end of December, so why the title for this week’s comment? The answer is easy – sunset on March 22nd in the Gregorian calendar this year was the 1st of Nisan in the Biblical calendar, which is the calendar of the Kingdom of YHVH. I am sure that most of our readers know that the Biblical day begins at sunset not sunrise, so last Wednesday evening was Rosh Chodesh Nisan – the first day of the month of Nisan. And according to the verse in Exodus 12:2, the 1st day of Nisan is the also the first day of the New Year or Rosh ha Shana in Hebrew. I also realise that most Jewish people celebrate New Year in September or October, depending on how the Biblical and Gregorian calendars line up. There can be up to4 week’s difference as the Biblical dates are fixed to the Moon and the Gregorian dates are Solar.
Over the last few years a growing number of Messianic fellowships, Churches and a growing number of Christians have begun to celebrate Rosh Chodesh (New Moon) in addition to the keeping the Sabbath on Friday / Saturday, and celebrating the Biblical Feasts as YHVH gave to Moses in Leviticus 23. We can see that the Bible does direct us to observe the New Moon as well as the other feast days Psalm 81:3 Blow the trumpet at the time of the New Moon, at the full moon, on solemn feast days.
As I have explained in previous comments, the original Hebrew word that is translated as feast or festival is Moed and the plural is Moedim. A more accurate translation of Moed is an appointed time. The 7 special days are GOD’s appointed times to meet with His people and to advance His plan of Redemption. I like to see these dates as GOD’s very special appointments. Remember that every important event related to the New Covenant takes place on on a Moed, often at the same time of the day, and the dynamics of the original and the New Covenant fulfillment are identical. Four of the 7 Moedim have been fulfilled and the other 3 that are yet to be fulfilled will also take place on the relevant Moed, giving us a good indication of where we are in prophetic time. So why is it that most of the Church is not interested in the Moedim ?
As for the Sabbath, New Moons and New Year, our Creator desires His people to observe His Sabbaths and News Moons – Isaiah 66:23 And it shall come to pass that from one New Moon to another, And from one Sabbath to another, … All flesh shall come to worship before Me,” says the Lord. (NKJ) There is another very good reason that we should observe these events. These 3 events are about Renewal. At the end of the weekly Sabbath, a new week begins. As the sliver of the new Moon reappears every 4 weeks a new month begins. Every 12 months, on the 1st of Nisan a new year begins.
I was not intending to write what I am writing next, but it just dropped into my thoughts ….. Because these 3 events represent a new beginning, at the end of every week we can make a new beginning with the LORD, at the end of every month we can make a new beginning with the LORD, and at the end of every year we can make a new beginning with the LORD. Even at the end of every day, as the new day begins, we can make a new beginning with the LORD. Hallelu YAH for these unlimited new beginnings. We need to make the most of the unlimited mercy and grace of the GOD of Israel to allow us to make a fresh start.
I want to encourage everyone to align yourselves with YHVH’s calendar – the calendar of the Kingdom. I believe that as we do our best to synchronize our lives with the Kingdom calendar, we will see the dynamics of the Kingdom working more powerfully in our lives. At the very least let us acknowledge and thank the LORD for every new day, every new week, every new month, and every new year that He gives us to worship Him and seek Him in prayer for that fresh start.
Psalm 118:24 This is the day that the LORD has made, we will rejoice and be glad in it – NJK.
The LORD bless you as you bless Israel by praying for Shalom and safety over Israel at this very spiritually strategic time. Let’s also pray that multitudes of Muslims will have a personal encounter with Yeshua over the month of Ramadan, and that GOD will lift the veil off the eyes of multitudes of Jews to see that Yeshua is the Lamb of GOD as they celebrate Passover this year.