eBible Fellowship

Let us read a passage in Deuteronomy 16. We read in Deuteronomy 16:1-15:

Observe the month of Abib, and keep the passover unto JEHOVAH thy God: for in the month of Abib JEHOVAH thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by night. Thou shalt therefore sacrifice the passover unto JEHOVAH thy God, of the flock and the herd, in the place which JEHOVAH shall choose to place his name there. Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction: for thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt in haste: that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of thy life. And there shall be no leavened bread seen with thee in all thy coast seven days; neither shall there any thing of the flesh, which thou sacrificedst the first day at even, remain all night until the morning. Thou mayest not sacrifice the passover within any of thy gates, which JEHOVAH thy God giveth thee: But at the place which JEHOVAH thy God shall choose to place his name in, there thou shalt sacrifice the passover at even, at the going down of the sun, at the season that thou camest forth out of Egypt. And thou shalt roast and eat it in the place which JEHOVAH thy God shall choose: and thou shalt turn in the morning, and go unto thy tents. Six days thou shalt eat unleavened bread: and on the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly to JEHOVAH thy God: thou shalt do no work therein. Seven weeks shalt thou number unto thee: begin to number the seven weeks from such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn. And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto JEHOVAH thy God with a tribute of a freewill offering of thine hand, which thou shalt give unto the LORD thy God, according as JEHOVAH thy God hath blessed thee: And thou shalt rejoice before JEHOVAH thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are among you, in the place which JEHOVAH thy God hath chosen to place his name there. And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt: and thou shalt observe and do these statutes. Thou shalt observe the feast of tabernacles seven days, after that thou hast gathered in thy corn and thy wine: And thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite, the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy gates. Seven days shalt thou keep a solemn feast unto JEHOVAH thy God in the place which JEHOVAH shall choose: because JEHOVAH thy God shall bless thee in all thine increase, and in all the works of thine hands, therefore thou shalt surely rejoice.

I will stop reading there.

I just want to mention that last week I said that the Feast of Tabernacles was identified with the latter rain period from September 1994 through May 21 of 2011. Someone pointed out this verse that I have gone to myself to indicate that the fruit is gathered in first and then the Feast of Tabernacles is held afterwards, because it says in Deuteronomy 16:13:

Thou shalt observe the feast of tabernacles seven days, after that thou hast gathered in thy corn and thy wine:

I just want to explain something and to thank the person who brought this up. This is somewhat of a correction, but it also helped me to understand a little bit more of what God has done.

Remember that the Feast of Tabernacles is identified with the Feast of Ingathering, and it was the Feast of Ingathering, really, that was in view beginning September 7, 1994 when the latter rain began to be poured out and the great multitude began to be saved. That Feast of Ingathering continued for over that period that was about 17 years.

In this sense, Tabernacles is identified with the 17 years of the latter rain, because Ingathering was to be held at the same time as the Feast of Tabernacles. Yet the fruit has to be gathered in before you hold the Feast of Tabernacles.

For now, I do not want to get into how I think that this has worked out, but I did just want to thank the person for bringing this up. It is probably more accurate to think of the 17-year period from 1994 to 2011 as the spiritual fulfillment of the Feast of Ingathering, which is identified with Tabernacles.

By the way, this is not the study for today. I am just making a comment on the Scripture that we read. But in Nehemiah 8, which is the one place in the Old Testament where the phrase “last day” is mentioned and is the phrase that we find seven times in the New Testament where Jesus in the Gospel of John said, “I will raise him up at the last day,” this does not say “them.” It says, “I will raise him up at the last day”; and in Nehemiah 8:18, referring to the last day of the feast, it says:

Also day by day, from the first day unto the last day, he read in the book of the law of God. And they kept the feast seven days…

This is referring to the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles and this is why we thought that the raising “him” up meant the believers that would be raised up and resurrected on the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles.

Well, in the context of Nehemiah 8, notice what it says in Nehemiah 8:2:

And Ezra the priest brought the law before the congregation both of men and women, and all that could hear with understanding, upon the first day of the seventh month.

“The first day of the seventh month” was September 7^th in 1994 and it was the day of the blowing of trumpets. This is where Nehemiah 8 begins and then they have a reading of the Scripture where they had 13 men who caused the reading of the Scripture to be understood. It was a huge congregation and they did not have microphones. Ezra was on the podium where he would preach, and then they had 13 men who would explain what was being said.

This fits in with the whole period of the latter rain when God opened the Scriptures after 13,000 years of history and caused His people to understand many things, which leads right into the Feast of Tabernacles and that reference to the “last day.”

So the Feast of Ingathering all began on the “first day of the seventh month.” Spiritually, it was fulfilled over the 17-year period. This is how it is identified with Tabernacles, which, if you remember, Mr. Camping called “the feast of the Bible.” This was because of the way that God identifies this, especially here in Nehemiah, with the opening up of the Scriptures, which identifies with the years that were just past.

Let us read another passage in the New Testament in the book of James. We will read chapter one. It says in James 1:1-27:

James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting. My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations; Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience. But let patience have her perfect work, that ye may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. For let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways. Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted: But the rich, in that he is made low: because as the flower of the grass he shall pass away. For the sun is no sooner risen with a burning heat, but it withereth the grass, and the flower thereof falleth, and the grace of the fashion of it perisheth: so also shall the rich man fade away in his ways. Blessed is the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him. Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death. Do not err, my beloved brethren. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath: For the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls. But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was. But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed. If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain. Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, To visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.

I will stop reading there.

There is just one comment that I would like to make on this. In James 1:3, we read again:

Knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience.

So we could define “patience” as “the trying of your faith.”

It is interesting what we read in Hebrews 10:36:

For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise.

So you do “the will of God,” and we will not discuss at this time how it was possible to have done this when we know that this is an ongoing thing on a daily basis; but God says “after ye have done the will of God” that “ye have need of patience.” What is “patience”? It is “the trying of your faith” so that “ye might receive the promise.”

When we think about patience and we think about waiting, we just think that it is a period of time. This is our understanding and idea of this. But, actually, patience is a period of trial.

Just think about this. During a period of trial, if you fail the trial, have you patiently waited? No. You have not exhibited any patience at all, so you are not being patient and you are not waiting properly.

True patience is when you are being tried “after ye have done the will of God” and it is the trial “of your faith” so that it can be seen. Then after that period, God will give the promise. He will give what the Bible speaks of.

Does anyone have a short passage or verse? Okay. We are right there. We read in Hebrews 10:26-39:

For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions; Partly, whilst ye were made a gazingstock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, whilst ye became companions of them that were so used. For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance. Cast not away therefore your confidence, which hath great recompense of reward. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. For yet a little while, and he that shall come will come, and will not tarry. Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul.

God will not tarry, which means that He has a set time or a set date that has never changed and never will change. It was known from the very beginning. He knows the end from the beginning, and that date is set in stone. It is unalterable. It is the end of the world.

Then why does God say in Habakkuk: “though it [he] tarry”? Remember that we need to change that pronoun from “it” to “he.” So why does He say, “Though [he] tarry…[he] will not tarry”? Do you remember this?

So, on one hand, He is saying that He is going to tarry. On the other hand, He is saying that He will not tarry, which, of course, is the case because God knows that He set up a program wherein it would give every appearance in the world that there would be a certain date that would be the end of the world and that this date would come and go.

So, from the vantage point of man with our limited understanding, it appears that He tarried. But, in fact, He has not tarried. He has a time, an appointed time, when He will return.

[Note: A question is asked about our need of patience and if this is in relation to the period of time when it appears that He is tarrying and when the final end comes.]

Yes. The key phrase is “after ye have done the will of God.” It was God’s will to warn the world of Judgment Day on May 21, 2011. This is done and it is a finished act. But now we need patience, which is actually the trying of faith, because this is all included in God’s plan, until the actual time that has been selected by Him comes.

I think that we will discuss this date in a few weeks. We are not going to discuss this today because we are not ready.