Celebrating The Feast of Trumpets

     It is very difficult to summarize the history and significance of this holy Feast of God in just one daily post.  I will not attempt to cover everything there is to reveal about this celebration, but rather to  give you a simple-to-understand overview, so that you can study and do your own research.
     I find it interesting that the Bible says less about the Feast of Trumpets than any of the other feasts.  It was simply to be a holy day celebrated with trumpet blasts, on the first day of Tishri, the 7th Month on God's established lunar calendar (falls in our Sepember /October).  We must also understand that the Lord has often used trumpets to declare liberty, deliverance from death, as a warning, and as a signal -- for instance when Isaac was spared from sacrifice; when Joshua conquered Jericho; and as an alarm that the Day of the Lord is coming (Joel 2:1).  The trumpet was also the signal for the field workers to come into the Temple.
     The first reference to the Feast of the Trumpets is found in Leviticus 23:24: "In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall observe a day of solemn rest, a memorial proclamation with a blast of trumpets, a holy convocation."  The Feast of Trumpets, just as the other six Holy Days of God, foreshadowed certain aspects of the ministry of Jesus Christ. As mentioned in this blog before, the intentions of Christ's ministry at His First Coming have all been fulfilled, and are represented in the commemorations of the Spring Feasts.  The Fall Feasts are a picture of the future fulfillment of His Second Coming.

     So how are we to interpret our spiritual connection to God with The Feast of Trumpets, and what significance does it have to us today? First of all, in the Old Testament, God's prophets linked the blowing of trumpets to the future Day of Judgment: “Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land tremble, for the day of the LORD is coming. It is close at hand” (Joel 2:1; see also Zephaniah 1:14, 16).  The blowing of the trumpets was understood to be a call to repent and prepare oneself to stand trial before God who would execute His judgment ten days later on the Day of Atonement.  The sound of the trumpet is a spiritual wake-up call to listen to God, repent of your sins, and commit to holy living.
    How long has man been waiting for the Lord to return?  I daresay, the Apostles thought it would happen in their lifetime, and man has been anxiously looking forward to His return every day since.  And how many of us are familiar with 1 Corinthians 15:51-55:  Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed— in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.  For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. So when this corruptible has put on incorruption, and this mortal has put on immortality, then shall be brought to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory."   Believers recognize that as the Rapture of the Body of Christ.  To further confirm this understanding, as we study the Feasts of the Lord, we will come to realize that the Feast of First Fruits in the Spring is the time of Yeshua's resurrection, as the first of the harvest of souls for God's Kingdom.  At some future Feast of Trumpets in the fall, it will be the time when the harvest of men's souls will take place at their resurrection.
     Until that time comes, no man knows the day or hour.  But we are to know the [appointed] times and seasons (which are the Feasts) and be looking for His return -- because we are awake and sober, we will not be caught unawares.  If you know that these Fall Feasts provide a rehearsal for His return, then you are no longer looking for signs, you are listening for the trumpet call and shout!  We are to be joyful in anticipation, yet somber in the knowledge that it is time to consider our sins before God.
     So, what does that look like for us Christians?  I do not believe that we are called to follow the Jewish traditions as laid out in the Talmud.  (Many of these traditions originated during the Babylonian exile, when the Jews had no Temple or priests to read the sacred scrolls.  So they developed traditions as they recalled them, and added to them throughout the ensuing years).  Yet there are things we can do that pay homage to the roots of our faith while being true to the calling of God.  Let me share what me and my family plan on doing...
     Sunday, September 13th, at sundown begins the Feast of Trumpets.  We will gather for a solemn, yet joyful meal together, and pray this blessing before those in attendance:  "Bless are You, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who commanded us to hear the sound of the trumpet."   As we enjoy our meal, we will acknowledge that this Day begins the repenting of our sins of the past year and starting fresh with God.  We will recognize Christ's resurrection by reciting Psalm 47:5, which proclaimed:  God has ascended amid shouting, the Lord with the sound of a trumpet.  We will then recite 1 Corinthians 15:51-55 (see above), which proclaims our own resurrection on some future Feast of Trumpets.
     The center of our celebration will be the reading of Scripture, first those that make us conscious of  the coming Day of the Lord, such as Joel 1:15:  Alas for the day! For the day of [the judgment of] the Lord is at hand, and as a destructive tempest from the Almighty will it come.  Other Scriptures that you might want to read are:  Isaiah 2:12-19; Isaiah 13: 6-13; Joel 3:12-16; Amos 5:16-20; Zephaniah 1:14-2:3; Zechariah 13:6-9; Zechariah 14:1-9; and Malachi 4:5-6.
     We will follow that with Scriptures that promise God's protection, such as Hebrews 9:28:  So Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.  Other Scriptures to include are:  Psalm 51; Psalm 91; Psalm 103:12; Isaiah 43:1-7; Matthew 24:31-42; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9; Titus 2:13-14; 1 Peter 1:13; Revelation 3:10-13 and 11:15-17.
      We will finish our celebration with the following blessing:  Blessed are You, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, Who has made us holy by your commandments.  We thank you for the blood of Yeshua that was shed for us.  We thank you for granting us life, for sustaining us, and for enabling us to reach this day.  And, Lord we honor your command to listen for the sound of the trumpet.  Praise and honor and glory be to You in the Body of Christ for all future generations, as we commemorate Your appointed times and wait for the hope of our salvation,  fulfilled in Your Son. Amen.
     So, here's what I want you to take away from this blog.  I am in no way prescribing a set way to honor or celebrate this Holy Day.  In my heart, as discerned by the Holy Spirit, I believe God simply wants us to recognize His purpose, His message, and His intentions in establishing these appointed times.  If we can do that in fearful awe of Him, I don't think He cares what we serve at this meal; what Scriptures we recite; or the wording of the prayers and blessings.  As long as it is all dedicated to Him in authentic and true understanding of what we are doing, then I think it greatly pleases Him.  I know that our Home Church group has been blessed since we started acknowledge and celebrating His Feasts, and I hope you will begin to bless your family in like manner, as the sweet aroma of your obedience permeates God's throne room.

Numbers 29:1    "On the first day of the seventh month, you shall have a holy [summoned] assembly; you shall do no servile work. It is a day of blowing of trumpets for you [everyone blowing who wishes, proclaiming that the glad New Year has come and that the great Day of Atonement and the Feast of Tabernacles are now approaching]."