by
Keith Hunt and Robert Thompson
The final Great Feast of the Lord is NOT the Feast of
Tabernacles, but the OCTAVE or EIGHTH day, as explained in
Leviticus 23. I have presented on this Website studies that
plainly show and prove that this eighth day was NOT a part of the
Feast of Tabernacles, which was a SEVEN day feast, not an eight
day feast. The eighth day was a DISTINCT and SEPARATE feast to
the Lord.
The Lord began His festival year with a ONE day feast
(Passover) followed by a SEVEN day feast (Unleavened Bread) and
He ended His festival year with a SEVEN day feast (Tabernacles)
followed by a ONE day feast, the last two Fall festivals being
exactly the reverse of the first two Spring festivals, in the
length of days for two festivals (the first two in the first
month and the last two inside the seventh month).
Christianity as a whole has never understood, nor has it any
logical answer in the plan of salvation for countless millions
down through the ages, who have never known or been presented
with the truth of God's word and salvation through the ONLY way
and ONLY person - Jesus Christ. The pages of your Bible give the
answer. Paul was inspired to write about that part of God's
salvation mercy, but most just read right over it, not
understanding what Paul was clearly teaching us.
This Last Great Feast is explained in my study "The Festival
of the White Throne Judgment" - you can link to it at the bottom
of this study. Please make sure you read and digest this study.
It will be one of the best blessings to you for the answer to a
troubled mind, that many Christians have been perplexed about for
centuries, concerning friends or loved ones (and/or large parts
of mankind) that never had in this life-time, a chance for
salvation and to accept Jesus Christ as personal Savior.
Now to more insights of an overview, from Robert Thompson.
THREE HOLY CONVOCATIONS
We have mentioned before that the seven convocations were
divided into three major convocations: (1) Passover, Unleavened
Bread, Firstfruits; (2) Pentecost; (3) Trumpets, Day of
Atonements, Tabernacles.
When we were describing the Person and work of the Lord
Jesus Christ we stated that the first group portrayed Christ as
the great High Priest of God; the second group (Pentecost)
portrayed Christ as the great Prophet of God; and the third group
portrayed Christ as the King of kings and Lord of lords.
"Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the Lord
thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of
unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of
tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the Lord empty:
every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of
the Lord thy God which he hath given to thee" (Deut.16:16,17).
Now that we are portraying the redemption of the individual
believer, let us look at these three major convocations as three
reapings of the Christian person.
First, the Christian is reaped unto the Lord Jesus Christ.
Second, the Christian is reaped unto the Holy Spirit.
Third, the Christian is reaped unto the Father.
Let's see if this analysis is helpful to our understanding.
It may be somewhat enlightening to think of these three
reapings as three deaths and three resurrections which the
Christian experiences. These three deaths and resurrections
are typified by the three hangings of the Tabernacle of the
Congregation: the gate leading into the courtyard; the door
leading into the holy place; and the veil leading into the holy
of holies.
THE FIRST REAPING
The first reaping is unto the Lord Jesus Christ, so to
speak. It is typified by the gate of the courtyard. It is
typified also by the first major convocation (Passover,
Unleavened Bread, and Firstfruits), and by the Red Sea.
We experience the first reaping when we accept the Lord
Jesus Christ as the atonement for our sins and put no confidence
whatever in our own ability to satisfy God by our own righteous
behavior. We forsake our own self-righteousness, and cast ourself
upon the righteousness which is of God by faith in Christ.
This first death is the death of our "old man." It is
followed by the judgment of God upon the gods of this world who
have kept us in bondage. Calvary is the judgment of God upon the
gods of this age. The first death in this context is followed by
a first resurrection - a resurrection unto the righteousness of
God.
We walk out of darkness into the light of God's presence. We
are born again (converted - being "born again" is not what most
think it is - see the study on "Born Again" on this Website -
Keith Hunt). We get baptized in water, in obedience to God's
Word, dramatizing the fact that the power and authority of hell
has been left behind and we now are God's servants.
The first reaping occurs instantly, because by faith we
reckon ourself death with Christ and by faith we reckon ourself
alive with the resurrected Christ. Our spirit is raised up to sit
with Christ in God. It is an instant death and an instant
resurrection, and from this time forth we walk in the
righteousness of Christ freely imputed to us. We are clothed over
with His own righteousness.
THE SECOND REAPING
The second reaping is unto the Holy Spirit. It is typified
by the door of the Tabernacle. It is typified also by the second
major convocation - Pentecost, and by the giving of the Law upon
Mount Sinai.
We experience the second reaping when we receive the baptism
with the Holy Spirit (upon our physical baptism - see Acts 2:38 -
Keith Hunt), and set out to walk in obedience to the law of the
Spirit of life. We forsake our own fleshly lusts and seek to live
in the discipline of the Spirit, putting to death the deeds of
the body, as the Spirit leads. The death of the door has to do
with our confessing and resisting our sins. It is followed by the
judgment of God upon sin which is in us. The second death, in
this context, is followed by a second resurrection - a
resurrection of the power of the Holy Spirit working in our life.
We come to know the Holy Spirit in two ways: first, as the
One who gives us gifts and ministries so that we can contribute
and receive the manifestation of the Holy Spirit, thus building
us up into the unity of the faith, unto the perfect man, unto the
measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. Second, we come
to know the Holy Spirit as the One who brings forth in us the
fruit of Christ - likeness: love, joy, peace, long-suffering,
gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance. The Spirit who
dwells in us yearns over us with a godly jealousy, and He fights
against Satan, against the spirit of this age, and against our
flesh (when the truth is known the Holy Spirit comes from BOTH
the Father and the Son Jesus Christ - see the studies on the Holy
Spirit on this Website - Keith Hunt).
The second reaping occurs slowly, taking place over a period
of time as the Holy Spirit leads us into various circumstances.
We do not die out to sin all at once, except in the theoretical
sense. In actual experience it is a daily dying and a daily
renewing of life, as the Holy Spirit brings us down to the death
of the cross, and then imbues us with divine life so that we can
overcome evil with good. The Holy Spirit brings to us the virtue
of the broken body and shed blood of Christ so that we can keep
on overcoming, no matter how much evil hits us. This second
resurrection occurs slowly, proceeding out of our daily dying.
Death, life! Death, life! Death, life! will it never end? Yes, it
will, if we do not give up but remain faithful to the dealings of
the Lord in us.
THE THIRD REAPING
The third reaping is unto the Father. It is typified by the
veil of the Tabernacle. It is typified also by the third major
convocation (Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles),
and by the crossing of the River Jordan.
We experience the third reaping when we press on past
Pentecost to know the fellowship of Christ's sufferings and the
power of His resurrection. We decide to become the servant of the
Lord, and to present ourself before Him forever in order that He
may use us in His kingdom as He will.
This third death is the death of our self-will. It is
followed by the judgment of God upon us as a person. The third
death is followed by the resurrection of the body, at the
appearing of our Lord Jesus Christ in glory.
We walk now in the image of Christ. We are fighters against
the enemies of the Lord. We are a part of God's great "servant,"
described in the book of Isaiah. We become a king unto God,
ruling over our allotted portion of God's creation. We become a
priest unto God, interceding before Him and bringing the
knowledge of the Lord to those in need.
The third death occurs over a period of time, as we are
brought into the sufferings of Christ. These are not the
sufferings which come as a judgment against our sins. These are
sufferings of the kind the Lord suffered - the sufferings of the
righteous person who is being made perfect. For example: our good
is evil spoken of; our judgment is taken away; we are humiliated
without reason; we suffer wrong at the hands of our brethren; God
deals with us endlessly, night and day, trying every thought,
every word, every motive. We see wrong and are forbidden by the
Lord to criticize. We become blind and deaf in the Lord, and all
our springs are channelled into Him. He becomes our life, and we
no longer have the "rights" to self-seeking that others enjoy.
But the fullness of the third resurrection is instantaneous
- in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.
If we go all the way through this third death, according to
God's satisfaction, our reward in glory will be beyond our
ability to conceive. The sufferings may be great; prolonged. But
compared with the glory which is going to be revealed in us, the
sufferings are not worthy of mention. Let us press on!
The idea of the three great reapings is very important. This
concept appears many times in Scripture, such as the thirty-fold,
sixty-fold, and hundred-fold of the parable of the sower in Mark
4; the fruit, more fruit, and much fruit of John 15; the three
levels of Noah's ark; and so forth. Paul was caught up to the
third heaven. Hosea says, "After two days will he revive us: in
the third day he will raise us up, and we shall live in his
sight" (Hos.6:2).
The three reapings are seen most clearly in the Tabernacle
of the Congregation, where we have the courtyard, the holy place,
and the holy of holies. Notice that the three areas are levels of
holiness. We are to be growing in holiness every day of our
Christian life.
The first area is that of initial salvation, or redemption.
Everyone at this level has been washed in the precious blood of
the Lamb and will be saved in the day of judgment. The courtyard
was surrounded by the Linen fence of righteousness. It was
lighted by the sunlight, indicating that Christ was crucified in
the open where He can be seen by the lost.
The second area is that of the ministry of the church. This
is a priestly level, and is the place where the ministries and
gifts of the Holy Spirit are operating for the purpose of
building up the body of Christ. The holy place of the Tabernacle
speaks of the partaking by the church of the broken body and shed
blood of the Lamb of God; of the manifestation of the Holy
Spirit; and of the Spirit-filled prayer and worship which ascends
from the body of Christ to the Father in heaven. The second area
was lighted by the lampstand indicating that the ministry in here
is not where it can be observed by the lost, or understood and
appropriated by any who are not of the church.
The third area is that of perfect holiness, of the fullness
of God's glory, of the fullness of power and authority, and of
the express image of Jesus Christ created in His saints. The
third level was lighted by the glory of God shining forth from
between the cherubim which overshadowed the mercy seat. The
throne of God and of the Lamb are here.
The first area leads into the second, and the second area
leads into the third, if we follow on to know the Lord.
"Come, and let us return unto the Lord: for he hath torn, and he
will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will bind us up. After two
days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise us up, and
we shall live in his sight. Then shall we know, if we follow on
to know the Lord: his going forth is prepared as the morning; and
he shall come unto us as the rain, as the latter and former rain
unto the earth" (Hos.6:1-3).
"Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures today and tomorrow,
and the third day I shall be perfected" (Luke 13:32).
................
So I bring to a conclusion this study portion in typology of the
Festivals of the Lord as written by Robert Thompson in 1975. He
did write more concerning the typology for the "church" and
"setting up of the Kingdom" which I may yet present to the
reader in the future.
Remember now to read the study I wrote called "Festival of the
White Throne Judgment" (see link below) which very few
understand. Even Robert Thompson, with all his insight, did not
know or understand this wonderful part of the topological
salvation plan for ALL who have ever lived on this earth. The
Lord is MIGHTY in MERCY and He will in HIS time show mercy to
everyone that has ever been created as a person from the uniting
of the human egg with the human sperm. The Lord knows all from
the womb, and He will have mercy upon all, so all can have a
clear and perfect chance to know Him and Christ Jesus. All will
be granted an offer of salvation, then it will be up to each
individual to accept it or reject it. To accept will grant the
believer an eternal life that is beyond the imagination of the
human mind, for it will be a life on the very level of God the
Father Himself, a part of the very FAMILY of God, the Kingdom of
God - Keith Hunt (September 2004).
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