[Steve Myers] Good evening everyone, welcome
to Beyond Today Bible Study tonight. Tonight, we're going to focus on the Feast of Trumpets
and talk about an interesting aspect of that special Holy Day. Before we do, I certainly
like to welcome those of you here in the room, those of you who may be with us on the web,
and even those that will watch down the line in the archives. So, welcome to our Bible
study tonight. Why don't we stand and we'll ask God's blessing on our Bible study tonight.
So, if you'll bow your heads. Great loving Heavenly Father, God Almighty,
we thank You so much that You are an awesome God. Thank You for being our Father. We thank
You for the concept of family, God, that You're bringing us into Your family. What a wonderful
blessing it is. Thank You for showing us Your way, Your truth, Your plan, and we're going
to talk about that plan tonight, Father. So, we just pray that You'd inspire the words
that are said, help us to gain a deeper meaning into Your word, Your Holy Scripture, Father,
that You've given us so that we can understand Your way and Your plan for each and every
one of us, God. And we pray, Father, that You'd certainly help us as we try to draw
nearer to You. So, inspire us and guide us, and lead us, Father, in both the speaking
and the hearing so that we can apply these things in our life and become more like Christ.
So, Father, we thank You, we praise You, we honor You now, and put this study into Your
hands. And we ask it all in and by and through the authority of our Savior Jesus Christ,
we pray, Amen. Well, as I mentioned, we're going to have
kind of a one Bible study lesson on The Feast of Trumpets. And I have known, as you consider
The Feast of Trumpets if you've thought about anything that offsets this particular Holy
Day from the rest. Is there anything that comes to mind that maybe makes it stand out
or makes it feel a little different? Maybe it is a little unusual, and it's certainly
one that stands apart from the others. As you may know, if you were to look through
Leviticus 23 where it lists the Holy Days, the Feast of Trumpets falls right in the middle.
We have three before it and three after it. And I think we'll come to see that it is right
there in the middle. It's right there at the crux of significant things that it symbolizes
and the things that it represents. And we're going to notice a couple of those two things
tonight. And as we think about this special Feast day,
this Feast of Trumpets, maybe it is that section of scripture that comes to mind that maps
out God's plan, those maps out those special Holy Days, that's found in Leviticus 23. You
got to turn there with me. I'm not going to take time tonight to prove why we need to
keep these Days. We've got several studies here in the archive that you can look up if
you'd like to go through that particular aspect of why these Holy Days they should be kept. So, I'm not really going to address that tonight.
We've got articles and sermons and Bible studies that deal with that. Certainly, they are to
be kept by Christians today. God outlines those things. Even in Leviticus 23, at the
beginning of that chapter, it reminds us that these Feast Days aren't Feasts of the Jews,
they’re not Feasts of Israel— they’re not limited to that. That in actuality, it
says in verse 2, "These are the Feasts of the Lord." So, these are God's Feasts. So,
we won't take time to say, "Okay, you need to do this," because you do. And there's plenty
of information on the web to help you with that if you've got a question about why I
need to keep this. I would like to zero in on something else
when it comes to the Feast of Trumpets. As I mentioned, it's four out of seven of those
Holy Days. And when you get down to chapter 23, verse 23, is where the description of
the Feast of Trumpets lies. So, if you'll turn there with me, chapter 23, verse 23.
If I could get my page from sticking together, I could get there, too. There it is. It says,
"The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the children of Israel,’" now, it gives
us the timing of this day, "In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you
shall have a Sabbath-rest, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation." He says, "You shall do no customary work on
it; you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord." And then it goes on to talk
about some other things. It gets onto the Day of Atonement and Feast of Tabernacles,
and the Eighth Day as well. Now, as you look at that, and maybe as we read through it really
quickly, doesn't seem like there's much there. It goes by pretty quick. It doesn't really
say where we're supposed to do things, it’s not a fast, it doesn't say anything about
pilgrimages. Okay, there's an assembly, there's offerings, something that kind of is like
most of the other Holy Days as well. So, anything there that offsets this Feast
of Trumpets from the other Holy Days, anything different or maybe unusual that may be slightly
hidden in these couple of verses— I think there is. When you look at the description
here, it's describing the Feast of Trumpets and it uses a word that stands out, at least
in my mind it does. It says, "It's a memorial of blowing of trumpets." So, trumpets has
a connection to a memorial. And as you think about that particular term, a memorial, well,
what is a memorial anyway? Well, if we had to define it, we could probably
come up with a pretty good definition. We've been to memorials before where they remember
something or perhaps someone. It would be something that oftentimes you celebrate. You
celebrate a memorial. We have days that are holidays that are memorial days, where we
rehearse things. We look at events that have happened in the past, and as well, some of
the memorials can point ahead to things to come. And so when we look at the Feast of Trumpets,
it says, "It's a memorial of blowing of trumpets," so a memorial. When we think of something
that honors or remembers or celebrates or observe. So, when you begin to think about
that in terms of the Feast of Trumpets, let's focus for just a minute looking back because
sometimes a memorial focuses on an event in the past that should come to mind as you celebrate
it. So, is there some event in the past may be connected with trumpets that should be
remembered, something that maybe should come to mind as we have this memorial of blowing
of trumpets. Of course, I wouldn't ask the question if the answer wasn't yes. Yes, there
is, maybe an event that might be unexpected but perhaps one that came to mind. If we go all the way back to Exodus, we're
going to go to the time period of around when the Ten Commandments were given. We're going
to that timeframe in Exodus 19, just before that listing of the commandments in Exodus
20. We're going to go to Exodus 19:16, Exodus 19:16. And
here in chapter 19, Moses goes to God. God calls him to the mountain. The people are
making themselves ready and something interesting happens here in Exodus 19:16. It says, "On
the third day, it came to pass, in the morning, that there were thunderings and lightnings,
and a thick cloud on the mountain; and the sound of a trumpet was very loud, so that
all the people who were in the camp trembled." So, I got to step back for a minute and think,
"Wait a second, is that just some guy blowing on a horn?" I mean, I've heard some bad trumpet
players in my life, but they don't make me tremble. Maybe they could do this, but they're
not going to cause you to shake in your boots. But this is something different. This is something
more than just a physical trumpet being blown because the people are scared out of their
wits. Verse 17, "Moses brought the people out of the camp to meet with God, and they
stood at the foot of the mountain." So, a couple of significant things happening
here that I think hearken to this fact of being a memorial. When you mention blowing
trumpets and remembering, I think the Israelites would have hearkened back to this event in
many ways. “Do you remember when God was giving His Law and He thundered out like a
trumpet?” I think that gives us a key to one of the aspects of The Feast of Trumpets
being a memorial. What was happening here wasn't just that the trumpet was blowing,
but Moses brought the people out. And what did they do? They met God. He brought them out to meet with God and they
stood at the foot of the mountain. And we see, we read on from there. Look at verse
18. Verse 18 it says, "Now Mount Sinai was completely in smoke because the Lord descended
upon it in fire." So, the Lord comes down, which is critical also in connection to the
Feast of Trumpets. He comes down, and it says, "Its smoke ascended like the smoke of a furnace,
the whole mountain quaked greatly." Verse 19, "And when the blast of the trumpet sounded
long and became louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him by voice." And if we look at verse 20, “The Lord came
down upon Mount Sinai on the top of the mountain. The Lord called Moses to the top, and Moses
went up.” So, we see this event taking place where the people are meeting God. And God's
voice is compared to the blast of a trumpet. Now, literally, this word trumpet here is
the shofar. The ram's horn used as a trumpet. But this isn't any old ram's horn. It's not any old ram's horn, this is a colossal
horn. This is a supernatural trumpet. This is maybe a regular trumpet on steroids or
something like that. I mean, that's what's going on here. This first meeting that Israel
is having with God is announced by this sound, this voice that sounds like a trumpet, like
a trumpet. Now, it wasn't a trumpet but it kind of sounds like a trumpet. And when you
blow a trumpet, there's vibrations and there's shaking when you form that embouchure and
you blow that horn. There's a connection here. This appearance of God, God coming down to
meet with them is directly connected with this sound of the trumpet. So, when you think
of Leviticus 23 and it says, "It's a memorial of blowing of trumpets." Boy, one of the events
that would come to my mind where we heard a voice like a trumpet would have been this
event. This event would certainly have come to mind and the fact that it sounded like
a trumpet. And, of course, when you study this concept of a trumpet and the voice and
the quaking throughout Scripture, it's amazing how many passages there are that deal with
this very thing. One that came to my mind was over in Psalm 29. So, if you turn with
me to the Psalms. In Psalm 29, we fast forward to the time of
king David. And king David records an interesting aspect that connects with this memorial of
meeting God and the sound of the trumpet. So here, if you go to Psalm 29, he talks about
this voice of God, this voice, this powerful voice. Verse 3, "The voice of the Lord is
over the waters; the God of glory thunders." He thunders. What does it sound like when
He thunders? Well, it says in verse 4, "The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of
the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars. Yes, the Lord
splinters the cedars of Lebanon. He makes them also skip like a calf, Lebanon and Sirion
like a young wild ox. The voice of the Lord devours the flames of fire… He divides those
flames of fire.” So, when you consider God's voice and what's
happening, it almost, maybe it's bringing some of these images we've watched on television
in the last few days. You know, that God's voice is like a gigantic hurricane that just
blasts everything it goes over and just tears it up, buildings that are laid flat, volcanoes
that are blowing its top. Maybe like a tornado just tearing everything up, trees that are
laid flat with all the lead. That's what God's voice is like. And so we see that that voice
of the Lord it says, we'll get down to verse 8. "It shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes
the Wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord makes the deer give birth, and strips
the forest bare; and in His temple everyone says, ‘Glory! Glory!’” It says, "The
Lord sits on the Flood, the Lord sits as King forever. The Lord gives strength to His people;
and the Lord will bless His people with peace." Certainly, when David thought of that voice
of the Lord, hard to imagine these things without thinking back to the Exodus, without
thinking back to the giving of the Law when God's voice thundered and quaked and the people
were dreadful of hearing that awesome voice of God. And so I think we can begin to see this connection
with understanding who God is and meeting Him. Or maybe a different way of thinking
of it is that God is making Himself known to the people. I mean up until that time where
He thundered from Sinai, well, Moses was familiar with God but the people generally were not.
And so God makes Himself known and they meet with God. And you have within that meeting,
this typology of trumpets, the appearance of God. God appears to them, His presence
with them. Coming down to the mountain, God makes Himself known to the people. Now, keep that in the back of your mind as
we consider how Trumpets is a memorial. Yes, looking back but also looking forward, looking
forward. Because in this situation that we read about in Exodus, there's another aspect
to it that is a remembrance, something that we look back and we think about and is a memorial
in a sense. You could turn with me over to Numbers 10. Numbers 10 takes another view
of trumpets and what they were used for. Certainly, God thundered like a trumpet at the giving
of the Law. But here's another aspect that looking back, people would remember the use
of trumpets, the use of trumpets. In Numbers 10, talks about a number of different
ways that trumpets were used. Let's just read a little bit. We'll see if we can come up
with point number two in connection to being a memorial. Numbers 10:1, here's what it says.
It says, "The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 'Make two silver trumpets for yourself; and
you shall make them of hammered work.’" So here, we have ceremonial trumpets instead
of a shofar. What are they used for? It says, "Use them for calling the congregation and
directing the movement of the camps." It says, "When they blow both of them, all
the congregation shall gather before you at the door of the tabernacle of meeting. They
blow only one, then the leaders, the heads of the divisions, shall gather to you." If
we skip down a little bit further, we go to verse 9. Verse 9, it says, "When you go to
war in your land against the enemy who oppresses you, then you shall sound an alarm with the
trumpets, and you will be remembered before the Lord your God, and you'll be saved from
your enemies." And so we see a number of ways that trumpets
were used at this time. In fact, let’s go on, verse 10 says a little bit more. "Also
in the day of your gladness, in your appointed Feasts, the beginning of your months, blow
the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over sacrifices." Look what it says at the
end of verse 10. What should it be? "They shall be a memorial for you before your God;
I am the Lord your God." So, what exactly is going on here in Numbers 10 that would
be connected to this aspect of being a memorial, of remembering? Of course, the trumpets are doing things,
right? What are they doing? If Israel heard the trumpets, they’d get a message, wouldn't
they? And they'd say, "Oh, well, that was just one trumpet. I don't have to worry about
that but leaders have to gather together. Up they blow two trumpets so we better assemble.
They blow an alarm of war, that tells us a different message." They're recognizing the
beginning of the month. "Oh, yes, I heard that horn and I know exactly what that's talking
about." They're blowing the trumpet over the offerings. "I can recognize that sound." And so what we begin to see here as a memorial,
part of that memorial is recognizing the message that the trumpets are sending. And so I think
that becomes key, doesn't it? The trumpets send a message. There's a message in the meaning
of the trumpets. And so whether it was war or whether it was assembly, or whether it
was an alarm, or whether it's time to march, like they marched around Jericho, calling
the people to gather, the assemblies. You know, all of those things sent a message to
the people. The Feast of Trumpets sends a message. The Feast of Trumpets sends a message,
a number of messages. Much like these various messages that were given to Israel, it's sending
a message today as well. That this world and its ways, it's systems, society, and our civilization,
the rule of mankind, it's going to come to an end. It's going to come to an end. And
the time is coming when that trumpet will sound. And as Christ prophesied in Matthew 24 that
there's going to be Great Tribulation, there will be wars and wars upon wars, and rumors
of wars even. Would that be something that connects as the people look back at the use
of trumpets and the message that was sent? You see, the message was, "Listen up, listen
up. There's something important you need to know." Well, the Feast of Trumpets says the
same thing. It says the same thing as we look forward to the prophetic fulfillment of the
Feast of Trumpets. In fact, maybe a connection to this idea of
the message. Later on, if we were to go through history and read some of the other examples
of how trumpets were used, there comes a time in the book of Isaiah where it talks about
the prophets. The people were to lift their voices like a, yeah, like a trumpet, like
a trumpet. They had to sound like a trumpet in other words. They had to blast this message.
They had to warn Israel of the consequences of sin. And so we see that the trumpets message, the
trumpets memorial is that sound that sends a message to this world: things aren't always
going to be like this. The rule of mankind is going to come to an end. There is coming
war. You better be on guard for this. You better be assembling yourselves together so
that you're ready for this time. And so it's a critical aspect of this concept of remembering
and memorializing some of the things that God wants to keep in our minds as critical
to this connection, to the Feast of Trumpets. Now, of course, we talked about when a couple
of these things took place when the people first met with God. It was probably one of
the most, maybe famous occurrences in the Bible, when Pharaoh finally gives up and says,
"All right, people, I'm going to let you go." And they get out of there. We have the exodus
taking place and the exodus itself, not just waiting for Sinai but the exit itself… Exodus
itself is a type of a memorial that should also be connected with the Feast of Trumpets.
The exodus itself has a connection to the Feast of Trumpets. It's not just historical
either because in this case, kind of similar to each of these. There's a past aspect of
these things, but there's also a future aspect. I might say, "Well, how can a memorial be
futuristic?" Well, think about remembering something. If you remember something, "Okay,
I remember what happened," it's kind of a memorial. But did you ever tie a string around your
finger to remember something? Is that kind of a remembrance? That's to remember something
you're supposed to do in the future. And so we remember things that are supposed to be
on our calendar, what's coming up next. So instead of a string, we have our phones, our
smartphones, and our calendars, and the alarms that go off and remind us of these things.
So, a remembrance can be in the future, too. And certainly, when it comes to these things
and the fulfillment of Trumpets, that's definitely fact. So, let's think about that for a second.
We look back, look back for just a moment at the Exodus and see if there's a connection
to the Feast of Trumpets. So turn with me, if you will. Instead of going
all the way back to the book of Exodus, we know what happened in that circumstance. And
we rehearsed how they met with God at that time of the Exodus. So, instead of taking
extra time doing that, let's look forward for a moment and we'll go to the book of Isaiah.
In Isaiah 27, we're going to see that there's a future connection with trumpets and Exodus
as well. So, take a look at Isaiah 27:12. Isaiah 27, and we'll look at verse 12 is where
we'll begin. So, Isaiah 27:12, it says, "It shall come to pass in that day…” of course,
that's a really interesting phrase, "in that day." In that day is looking forward to the
Day of the Lord. It's looking forward to the end time. It can refer to the greater period
of the end time. It can refer to the time exactly when Christ returns, that phrase "in
that day." And so we can read and see exactly what it's talking about. “In that day” it says, “that the Lord
will thresh, from the channel of the River to the Brook of Egypt.” So, we see kind
of a threshing going on. Now, if you've got different translations, I was reading in the
New King James. Some of the translations say, "The Lord will winnow." Yeah, that's not fishing
like a minnow but a winnow or threshing. Or, literally, what's happening here is beating
the chaff from the actual grain itself. And so the Lord's going to do that. And what's
going to happen in that day, that future time that lies ahead at the return of Christ, He
says, "You will be gathered one by one, O children of Israel." So, there's a future time coming that kind
of mirrors the Israelites leaving Egypt, but this is in the future. And God's going to
bring the children of Israel together again. It says, "One by one," verse 13, "So it shall
be in that day." Look what's going to happen. "The great trumpet will be blown; they will
come, who are about to perish in the land of Assyria, and they who are outcasts in the
land of Egypt, they shall worship the Lord in the holy mount of Jerusalem." And so we saw that trumpet connection to the
past, here it is in the future. There's going to be a future Exodus where God brings Israel
back together to Jerusalem. And as He assembles them together, we see that time frame is right
there at the time of the Great Tribulation and the return of Christ. This idea of threshing
kind of, I think indicates that very time. You know, if you can imagine you've got these
long stalks of grain with the grain at the top of the head of the stalk. And what did they do to it? They would lay
it down and they would just beat it. They would beat that stalk so that all the grain
would come off of it. And so then they'd be able to gather. That's kind of the threshing
process that they used. And so God's using that image to give us an idea of what it's
going to be like in that time. This world is going to get beat up. God's got a great
stick in His hand and that wheat is all laid out of this world. And God is going to begin
to thresh it, begin to beat it and thrash it to break loose the wheat from the chaff,
get rid of the bad stuff and keep the good. And He says He's going to do that from “…the
River to the Brook of Egypt,” right from there, and then gather the children of Israel.
They're going to be broken loose, in other words, from wherever they are, which seems
to be an indication like Pharaoh's Egypt. Some of them are going to be in captivity
where they were outcasts in the land. Yeah, they were like that. And we see they're going
to be returned. They're going to ultimately be returned. So, what's going to happen in
that day? The trumpet's going to be blown. The trumpet will blast. You think about that
people are hearing this thing. What did Israel do when they heard Isaiah
preaching these things? They said, "Yeah, yeah, our forefathers, they were in Egypt.
Yeah, we've heard about it, they've told stories. We sing songs about all that sort of thing."
But now, the prophet comes and he says, "Your whole nation is sick, and you guys are sick
from the top of your head to the soles of your feet. Your religion is wrong. Your government
is wrong. Your attitude is wrong. And God is going to come and thrash this world and
get a hold of you and take you back, one grain at a time, one grain at a time." And when does that happen? Not just at any
old time but it's very specific, isn't it? Which brings that reminder, that memorial
back to the top. He says, "In that day, the great trumpet will be blown." So, it's not
any old trumpet, but it's described as "the great trumpet," the great trumpet. Now, we're
talking about the imagery in 1 Thessalonians 4.
We're talking about 1 Corinthians 15, where it talks about the fact the trumpet is going
to sound and Jesus Christ is going to return, the great trumpet, the great trumpet. And so at that time, Israel is going to come
back together one by one, by one. So, that imagery of the Feast of Trumpets connects
with that. Because at the return of Christ, Israel is going to be gathered, and the great
trumpet will sound and Christ will return. Christ will return. And so what an image that
God paints for us that connects events in the past to events in the future? And it's
consistent and it makes sense and it all fits together, you know, so beautifully when you
see the way that the trumpet is used here. And the great trumpet will sound. And, of course, as you think about those things,
this world is going to be thrashed. You know, why will God do that? What's going to happen
at that time? I mean, we know as we read through the prophecies, all of that prophecies in
Matthew 24 or Luke 21. You read through those things and what's the state of this world
at that time. I mean, we know where we are now and all the challenges that we're facing
in this world today. And we're getting closer to these things because Christ Himself said,
these wars are going to increase and they're going to increase. They're going to become more intense. And
we see that happening around us. We see that happening with nature and the events that
have been going on, and whether it's hurricane after hurricane and wildfires. You know, we
may not right be there at this point but we're getting closer because it seems to be on the
rise, more and more, and more. And that's what Christ talked about in Matthew 24. These
things would increase in intensity and there would be more of them. And as that happens, what would be the case
if we were left to our means? You know, what would happen to mankind? God just said, "Well,
have at it." But Christ said, "No flesh would be saved alive." Read that in Matthew 24.
If we were left to our own means, you talk about all the things that are going on with
North Korea and Kim Jong-un and, you know, all the threats. So, yeah, we forgot about
that in the last couple weeks with hurricanes but that's still there. Nuclear warfare, if we're left to our own
means, you know, we have the capabilities of destroying the planet, you know, destroying
ourselves. And so what this is reminding us of is the fact that God's got to stop that.
God's got to say enough, enough. Unless we're going to annihilate ourselves, God has to
step in. And Trumpets is a memorial of that very fact as well. Remembering the fact that
if we're left to ourselves, we can't survive. We can't survive. And so I think a fourth aspect of this memorial
is the absolute fact that God will intervene. God has to step in because if we're left to
our own ways, we don't know how to teach ourselves to walk, we don't know how to govern ourselves.
That God's got to intervene in the affairs of man, and He has to gather His people together,
has to happen, has to happen. Christ spoke about that in Matthew 24. But instead of going
there, I want to look at Jeremiah. The prophet Jeremiah spoke to this concept of God's intervention.
Certainly, God intervened in the past, in circumstances with His people. But we can
also tie that ribbon around our finger or put it on our calendar that's God going to
intervene in the future as well. So, if you go with me over to Jeremiah 4:19.
Jeremiah 4:19, I think it's an important key in recognizing how God is going to intervene.
And, of course, when we think about that, it's an encouraging thing that mankind isn't
going to be left to himself to destroy himself, to destroy this earth. God's going to step
in. Jeremiah 4:19 speaks to that very thing. Notice what Jeremiah said, verse 19, chapter
4, "O my soul!” I think the NRSV says, "O I am so much in anguish, so much in anguish." He says, "I'm pained in my very heart! My
heart makes a noise in me; I can't hold my peace, because you have heard, O my soul,
the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war." You see, Jeremiah initially is thinking of
the challenges that God's people were facing at that time. God's people were facing the
time that they had disobeyed God so much, so often, so long that destruction was coming.
Much the same as what this world is facing now. What God's people were facing. Jeremiah
has already heard the trumpet. So it's already there. Verse 20, he says, "Destruction upon destruction
is cried, for the whole land is plundered. Suddenly my tents are plundered. My curtains
in a moment. “How long will I see the standard?" You know, the flag, the banner is out. “How
long am I going to see that and hear the sound of the trumpet? How long before it's just
all over?” And Israel is going to go into captivity, Judah going into captivity. He
says, "My people are foolish. They have not known Me.” Kind of a subtle
shift there from just Jeremiah speaking on behalf of God. God says, "My people are foolish. They haven't
known Me. They're silly children, they have no understanding. They're wise…” but it
says, "They're wise to do evil, and to do good they have no knowledge." And so we see
in a sense this duality of prophecy, that Jeremiah and God's people were right there
on the doorstep. Destruction was right there. All the alarm bells were going off. And yet
this is mirroring what's going to happen in the future. It's a reminder of what's yet to come, that
he goes on describes it even more here, verse 23, "I beheld the earth, and indeed it was
without form, and void; and the heavens, they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and
indeed they trembled, and the hills moved back and forth." So, we see heavenly signs.
We see earthquakes. We see volcanoes. Those are some of those things that Christ Himself
described, you know, that come in the end of time. He said, verse 25, "I beheld and indeed there
was no man, and all the birds in the heavens had fled. I beheld, indeed the fruitful land
was a wilderness, the cities were all broken down at the presence of the Lord, by His fierce
anger." So, we have that voice that just knocks down the cedars of Lebanon, taking care of
this same thing. That there is a time when the wrath of God will come and man's time
of his rule, his society, and his way, it's going to come to an end. It's going to come
to an end. He recognized that God's people at that time were right near the end, being
ready to be carried off into captivity but also hearkens to a time in the future when
that would happen as well, the time when God would intervene. Where should we pick it up? Go to verse 27.
"For thus says the Lord: ‘The whole land shall be desolate; yet I will not make a full
end.’" You see, man could destroy himself completely, but God's not going to allow that.
God's not going to allow man to destroy himself, not going to happen. God won't destroy him.
"I won't make a full end," verse 28, "for this shall the earth mourn, and the heavens
above be black, because I've spoken. I have purposed and will not relent, nor will I turn
back from it." He's not going to change. Now, we read these
things, and it's interesting to recognize the fact that how are all of these things
ushered in? You know, how does this happen? Well, as we read here. We go back to verse
19, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war, the voice of God, the blast of God's
voice will come again to this earth, not just in Jeremiah's time but prophesying for this
future time that the Feast of Trumpets points to. Yes, it's a memorial looking back, looking
back at the Exodus, the message. Looking back at the time when Israel and Judah went into
captivity and their disrespect for God's way, and totally looking away from the truth. What
happened to them? They were destroyed. They went into captivity. They were no more, no
more land of Israel in that sense. And so He's pointing to a future time as well when
the heavens will be black. There'll be great signs in the heavens. Cities are going to
be overthrown. And all these things ushered in with the voice of a trumpet. You read all those things and you put that
together with some of the prophecies in the book of Revelation with Luke 21. Those sections
of prophecies from Jesus Christ and it's frightening. It's a frightening time. It is absolutely
a time that will be a shaky and a frightening time. But it's a time that God's going to
step in. God's going to step in and as He does, Christ will literally return. Christ
will literally return to intervene in this world's affairs. And when He, does we see
that symbolism of that connection in the Feast of Trumpets. The trumpet will sound and God's
presence will be here on earth. Christ is going to return and come to earth.
And when we connect that, even to another aspect of this memorial, we can find this
over at 1 Corinthians 15. 1 Corinthians 15, here we see an aspect of this message. We
see an aspect of meeting God. Because it's not only those that are still alive at the
time that Christ returns where we're going to have a meeting, but even those Christians
who were dead are going to be resurrected. They're going to be resurrected. And in 1 Corinthians 15, we kind of see this
happen that God's going to intervene and His Saints, true Christians, dead or alive, are
going to be resurrected. We see that here, let’s pick it up in verse 12. It says, "Now
if Christ is preached that He's been raised from the dead, how do some among you say there's
no resurrection of the dead? If there's no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not
risen. If Christ is not risen, our preaching is empty, your faith is empty." “Our preaching
is…” Oh, “Yes, we're found as false witnesses of God, because we've testified
of God that He raised up Christ, whom if He didn't raise up— if in fact the dead do
not rise.” But what's the point? The point is He is risen. He was resurrected.
It's absolutely true. And so because it is true that Christ was resurrected, we can look
down to verse 52. Verse 52, it says, “In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the
last trumpet.” It says, “The trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised incorruptible,
and we shall be changed." We shall be changed. It says, "For this corruptible must put on
incorruption, 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's
written: 'Death is swallowed up in victory… in victory.’" And so we see at the sound
of this trumpet, we have this important connection that God intervenes and we have the resurrection
taking place. The resurrection takes place at the return of Christ. And so Trumpets certainly
is a remembrance to remember and said, "This is going to happen." This is going to happen
if we were to turn to 1 Thessalonians 4. It talks about the fact that even those that
are dead will be raised. Those that are alive will meet Christ in the air and escort Him,
meet Him and escort Him back to earth, His feet are going to stand on the Mount of Olives.
And we don't have to be worried and overanxious that were just going to be left to ourselves,
that we'll be lost. God's going to take care of us. God's going to intervene. He's going
to watch over His people. And trumpets is that reminder that there is hope. There's
hope for those who have died, and there's hope for those who are facing this Great Tribulation
that the resurrection lies ahead. And so it's an amazing time that ultimately,
well, like He says here in 1 Corinthians 15. "Death is swallowed up in victory." So, you
have that connection as well. As God intervenes, not only does the resurrection take place,
but ultimately victory is going to be the end result. Because oftentimes you think of
some of these challenges that Israelites were shaking in their boots when they were meeting
God. You know, there was that time that the declaration of war and the alarms are going
off and the trumpets are sounding, and it's a scary thing. We face the Great Tribulation
that's going to to be coming and we need God's intervention. But the hope is looking to God, recognizing
His authority over all that through Him there is victory. There is victory and so despite
all the events, all the challenges, all the anxiousness we may feel because of, "Wow,
things are getting out of control." And, you know, we're just getting started right now.
And even though it may get totally out of control, we know, we know God's going to intervene.
We can remember and keep that in mind. And God gives us this special Holy Day of
the Feast of Trumpets to help remember those things. To help keep that in mind so that
we don't have to be overly worried and go into a panic attack because of the circumstances
that we face, whether personal things or whatever it might be that's going on in the world or
in our country. Because ultimately, God wins. God wins and He gives us the victory through
His Son, Jesus Christ. And so, Trumpets is certainly a reminder of that. And, of course,
as He intervenes, He's going to show mankind the way to do it. He's going to show mankind
the way that we should live. He's going to show mankind the way they should
think and act. He's going to show mankind how to govern themselves. Because as Jesus
returns, the Feast of Trumpets also reminds us that the Kingdom of God is coming, the
Kingdom of God is coming. And at the return of Christ, I'll just abbreviate this, the
Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God will be established. God's Kingdom on earth will be
established and it will be a tremendous blast, like a trumpet, that will announce that very
thing to all of those who are alive on earth at that time. There's an amazing passage at the end of the
book. If we go all the way back to Revelation 11:15. Revelation 11:15, here we've just come
through the Great Tribulation. God's going to pour out His wrath upon this world. And
that last trumpet is going to sound. And verse 15, it says, "The seventh angel sounded: There
were loud voices in heaven, saying, 'The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of
our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!’” It says, “The twenty-four elders who sat
before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God,” here's what they
said, verse 17, "We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty, the One who is and was and who
is to come, because You have taken Your great power and reigned. The nations were angry,
and Your wrath has come, the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that You should
reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, and those who fear Your name, small
and great, and should destroy those who destroy the earth." And so that Trumpet memorial, that Trumpet
reminder points to the fact, Christ is going to return. The Kingdom of God is going to
be established. God's going to reward, it says, "His servants." Christ will come back
to this earth. He will literally establish God's government. And that voice will sound
out, that voice that broke the cedars of Lebanon, and He's going to take care of business and
put away those who are destroying the earth. It's going to be done. It's going to be over.
And all of these things have that Trumpets connection, have a connection to being a memorial,
to being a recognition to look back at events in the past that connect to things that will
occur in the future as well. So, we see that that kind of twofold purpose. Now, I think what that brings us to then is
okay, it represents all these cool stuff. Well, at least in my mind is pretty cool.
You know, that you see these events in the past. We see what's going to happen in the
future. And it's great to have an understanding of these things, to see how they interconnect
and how the Bible is consistent throughout. You know, it's a wonderful thing to recognize
these things. But one of the things that we can take note of in all of these different
aspects here, it needs to have an impact on us. In a way, part of the memorial in Trumpets
is that we better have our ears tuned into those sounds if you want to put it that way,
to sounds that God's warning us with. Because, for us, this still lies ahead, well, the Exodus,
well that’s long gone. Long gone Israel and Judah into captivity, and all of those
kinds of things. But yet, that prophecy in the future is still to come. It's still to
come. And so, we recognize here that that should impact us. It should force us to remember,
these things are coming in the future. So, I have to ask myself that, well, like ancient
Israel at Mount Sinai. Were they ready to meet God? You think of that same aspect of
the Feast of Trumpets, Christ is going to return. Are we spiritually ready? Are we spiritually
ready? That's one of the aspects of what Jesus Christ
comes to when He gives all of these warnings. When He reminds us about the significance
of literal events that are on the horizon. He reminds us through the symbolism of the
Feast of Trumpets, that these things are coming. And so it's not just good enough to know about
them. It's not going to get us very far. Well, so I know these things are going to happen.
I recognize that the Feast of Trumpets has that symbolism to the return of Christ and
the sound of the trumpet, and He's going to return. You know, the key is what does that mean to
me personally? And I think that's so important is that we take personal responsibility. Because
as we look at the significance of these things, I have to personalize this. You know, is my
spiritual state, is it one where I'm ready to meet God? If I'm not, I better change.
And we know we need to change. We know there are aspects of our life that just aren't right
and we need to repent. Trumpets reminds us of that. Trumpets reminds us of the giving of the Law,
God's standard to live by. Well, how am I measuring up to this standard? Am I personally
living to that standard? Where do I need to grow? And have I committed my life to that
very fact that I'm going to do whatever it takes to become more Christ-like, to put on
his character, to live by God's standard? You know, that's part of what Trumpets is,
it's a reminder. It's a reminder that this is a standard to live by. Jesus Christ set that standard. And we know
it says, we'll all stand before the judgment seat of Christ, all of us, all of us. So,
are we ready for that? Well, we should be because we don't know how long we're going
to live. We don't know. You know life is fleeting. We know that things can happen. And so it
reminds us, listen to that message. Are we listening to the trumpet? Are we hearing that
call? Do we recognize it's for me personally? It's not just for the Church. It's not just
for the United States and Britain. No, it's not just for the world. That's for me personally. And have I come out of this world? You know,
have I really made a personal Exodus so that I'm striving to live my life and my way of
thinking is outside of the realms of this world, and the influence that the god of this
age has on people of this age? Am I really out of that? That reminder of Trumpets should
be one that I take to heart, that I take to heart, that I can step back and look at my
own life. The Holy Days are wonderful for that. They are wonderful opportunities that
give us an extra Sabbath, an extra time to reflect on all of those kinds of things. And
so, Trumpets certainly will do that. You know, God's intervened in my life personally.
He's intervened in your life. You know, have I accepted that intervention and that influence
in my life? I need to, even more so. I've got to get me out of the way and let Christ
live His life in me more fully. And, of course, that's going to happen to this world. This
world has rejected God, rejected His way. Christ is going to come back. This world is
going to be thrashed and threshed and it's going to be overturned. And so God's going
to establish His way and His will come about. Well, that should be happening in my life
now that I take stock of where I'm at. And I'm going to make sure I allow God to fully
intervene in my life. So that I'm not resisting Him in any aspect, kind of like that image
of the wheat being beaten up. Every grain, I need to live for God. I need to put on His
mindset. And the chaff that's in my life, I'm going to get rid of it. It's got to be
out. It's got to be out. And I've got to take it that seriously. I've got to take it that
seriously. And so, considering all these aspects of the
connection to Trumpets and a memorial, I think really makes it live, at least in my mind
it does. Because the resurrection lies ahead, the resurrection lies ahead. And through Jesus
Christ, we can overcome. We can overcome, we can have the victory. Ultimately, this
world and its ways and even death itself are going to be swallowed up. And we then can
take personal responsibility to live by God's way now, live that way now. And I think one
of the aspects that comes to mind regarding that as well when you talk about a memorial,
there is a sense of celebration. There's a sense of celebration. The Feast of Trumpets, it's a celebration
as well. Celebrate the fact that God has done these great things. He's done it in the past,
He's doing it now in our lives, and He's going to intervene in this world in the future.
Is that something to celebrate? Is that something to be joyous about? Absolutely! You know,
God can't wait to get on with His plan. He can't wait to establish His Kingdom. And He
can't wait for this pronouncement to be made that the kingdoms of this world have become
the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ. Wow, what a day that will be when that pronouncement
is made. When the kingdoms of this world are just blown away and blasted out of existence,
like that sound of the trumpet, and Christ then will begin to reign, and that will go
on then for forever and ever. And so let's take it personally. Let's take it personally
and recognize the connections to Feast of Trumpets being a memorial, being a remembrance.
And making sure that we keep those things in mind and take those things personally,
and be spiritually ready for the return of Christ. The Feast of Trumpets certainly has
that great significant meaning that Christ will return, and we need to be ready. Well, that's what I have for you tonight.
I hope you found it helpful. I'm glad that you could join us. Now, we're going to take
a little hiatus on our studies for just a little bit. We'll pick them up in just a few
weeks. The first one is going to be, I believe it's at first Wednesday in November. And I
don't know what the date is, but I think it might even be November 1st. But look up the
first November date of Wednesday night. That's going to be our next studies so we're little
bit down the line, a little sneak peek of what's coming up. We're going to get into the book of Daniel
and look at some of the prophecies in the book of Daniel, their significance in the
past, and what that means for us in the future as well. So, we hope you'll join us for our
Bible studies on the book of Daniel that will be coming up beginning in November. So, thanks
for coming out tonight, glad that you were able to join me. Thanks for coming on the
web as well. Have a wonderful evening, safe drive home. May God be with you and we'll
look forward to seeing you next time.
