Sukkot or the feast of Tabernacles is one of the important feasts on the Hebrew calendar.
From the perspective of the finished work of Jesus, it should be pretty obvious that this feast was fulfilled by Jesus.
Yet, many Christians feel obliged to follow after the Jewish traditions and celebrate the feasts.
Let me just warn you before you read this post by reminding you that, as the bride of Christ, we are not obliged to celebrate the Jewish feasts. All the law, the prophets and the other books, including the feasts are ultimately fulfilled in Messiah Yah'shua ...
Are you sure Daniel?
And he said unto them, These are the words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me.
Then opened he their understanding, that they might understand the scriptures, Luk 24:44-45
Even today we have many traditions and like things that we do
You should be quite aware that the western tradition of Christmas (25 December - see here) has a pure pagan origin.
Google it if you'd like.
The date of Yah'shua's birth can be very accurately determined. Even Yah'shua, Jesus Himself never instructed us to celebrate His birthday. And so, neither did his disciples or the apostles during the first-century church.
The Jewish feasts were a shadow
It remains interesting, though, that even the dates of fulfillment in Jesus corresponds in the finest detail to the Jewish feasts.
Remember the details about Sukkot that we dealt with here?
The feast of Sukkot (feast of Tabernacles) commences at sunset on the 15th of the Hebrew month of Tishri in their calendar. It lasts for eight days whence the Jewish people celebrate their deliverance from bondage out of Egypt. They erect temporary shelters symbolizing the tent-dwellings they occupied during their 40 year tenure in the wilderness after the exodus and before deliverance came.
Interestingly, Sukkot begins with the full moon. It may even in some years coincide with blood (red) moons or full lunar eclipses of the moon, such as the second of four consecutive lunar blood eclipses that coincided with Passover and Sukkot in 2014 and 2015. The fact that it sometimes does, is ever-so-often exploited by the institutional church.
Where does Sukkot fit in
Sukkot follows Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement celebrated on the 10th day of Tishri in the Hebrew calendar which was the one day of the year that the high priest traditionally entered the holy of hollies to bring an atonement offer for the whole of the nation of Israel.
Aren't you soooo happy that you have a perfect High Priest sitting at the right Hand of the Father making intersession for you daily and even as you are reading this post?!!
But, what does this have to do with the birthday of Jesus?
Interesting that you should ask!
If by now, you googled the relevant site, of which there are many, you would have discovered that Jesus was born on the first day of Tabernacles (Sukkot) .
It was for this very reason that the Gospel of John very accurately recorded in Joh 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt (tabernacled) among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.
The word translated from the Greek as dwelt here is skēnoō which means to fix one’s tabernacle, have one’s tabernacle, abide (or live) in a tabernacle (or tent), tabernacle.
God incarnated Himself in the likeliness of human flesh (tabernacle) in Jesus.
Talking about birthdays ...
So, if you should decide to throw out the pagan traditions and stop celebrating Christmas on 25 December and you wish to still celebrate the birth of Christ ... then the 15th of Tishri on the Hebrew calendar would be the appropriate and more accurate choice in terms of dates. See our post on the Exact day of the birth of Yah'shua by clicking here.
Is it the beginning or the end?
However, let's not confuse the journey with the purpose.
That's what the enemy wants to do. To focus your attention on Christ as the baby in the crib instead of the Christ, the all-victorious, glorious, Christ raised on High upon a cross to redeem all the world ... and an open grave and abiding Spirit of Christ shed abroad to testify that He LIVES forever more!
Amen and HalleluYAH!
Amen and HalleluYAH!
Behold
Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and He will dwell [tabernacle] with them. They will be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God. Rev 21:3
So that we may sing with every creature saying Blessing, and honour, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb for ever and ever. Rev 5:13
There remains only one feast!
One feast Yah'shua said we should celebrate as often as we can, though.
This is the feast of His victory - His Body and His Blood!
This is the feast of His victory - His Body and His Blood!
HalleluYAH!