By Reuven and Mary Lou Doron
Ministry Contact: OneNewManMail@aol.com

“Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘In the seventh month on the first of the month, you shall have a rest, a reminder by blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall not do any laborious work, but you shall present an offering by fire to the LORD.’” Lev. 23: 24-25.

According to the biblical calendar, the Feast of Trumpets this year will start on sunset, September 12. This will be the first day of the seventh Hebrew month, and, according to rabbinical tradition, it is also considered to be the beginning of the new Hebraic civil year, the year 5768, counting from the creation of the world.

The coming weeks will usher in the three Fall Feasts of the Lord. Trumpets, the Day of Atonement and Tabernacles are stacked closely together over a span of 21 intense days, reflecting prophetically the drama unfolding at the closing of this age. This coming year will no doubt bring more turmoil, testing and purging, and this season of feasts presents an invitation for every child of God to reflect, take stock, and gird up our loins for the journey ahead.

Salvation History Prophesied

The seven biblical Feasts are grouped in three distinct seasons forecasting our salvation history. The spring feasts of Passover, Unleavened Bread and First Fruits announce the coming of the Lamb of God, His suffering, death and resurrection. Fifty days later follows Pentecost which points to the outpouring of the Spirit, the birthing of the Church, and the beginning of the harvest according to the agricultural cycle in the Middle East.

Lastly, Trumpets, the Day of Atonement and Tabernacles point to the end of this age of grace. These final celebrations speak prophetically of the birth pains, the shaking, the preparations and the coming of the Kingdom of God.

The first four feasts were historically fulfilled in the Lord’s first coming and in the outpouring of His Spirit. Likewise, we are confident that the final three feasts of God will also be fulfilled, in due time, in the Lord’s return in the glory and power of His Kingdom. Prophetically, the feasts of Trumpets, Atonement and Tabernacles serve to prepare God’s children for the end of the age.

From the blowing of the trumpets on the first day of the seventh month, to the final day of Tabernacles on the 21st day of that month, the Holy Spirit indicates the recurring cycles of alarm, repentance and victory that increasingly characterize our times.

Trumpets Sound the Alarm

The scriptures tell us in Colossians 2:16-17 that the Feasts of the Lord "are a shadow of things to come." Trumpets, therefore, is an earthly shadow of its heavenly equivalent, the sounding of an alarm. The blowing of the shofar is like the eerie sound of a siren cutting through the still air with its startling and disturbing wail. It’s meant to wake us up!

Whether a call to arms or to a solemn assembly, when ancient Israel heard the trumpet blast they came to attention! In the same way, the Feast of Trumpets is meant neither to comfort nor console us, rather it is a wake-up call; a strong elbow in our ribs designed to wake us up from the slumbering spirit of this age, jolting us into alertness, repentance, renewal, and service.

As we move deeper into the times of the end we will witness more disturbing trumpet blasts and troubling wake-up calls as this world enters deeper into the birth pains of the Kingdom of God. Be they natural disasters, plagues, wars or social disintegration, what will seem to some a disaster, will be a life saving and transforming alarm for others.

Blessed Birth Pains

Ten days after Trumpets follows the Day of Atonement, Yom Kippur in the Hebrew, foreshadowing Israel’s inevitable encounter with the Savior and the ensuing deep repentance and national redemption (see Zech. 12). These progressive solemn events will not come easily, and much prayer is needed to accompany this national revival through the final stages of labor.

We need to understand that no amount of prayer can undo or replace the need for contractions, as they, and only they, move the “baby” down the birth canal. All the works of God, whether in the secret of your own heart, family circle, nation, or across the earth, come to pass through the miracle of birth.

A divine seed has to be sown in the soil of faith; gestation follows, slow and hidden, resulting in the birth of a new creation; and that new born has to be nurtured and protected until it is mature enough to survive the hostile world and overcome it.

This is the way the Kingdom of God has always been introduced into this world. Whether through the call of Abraham and the early patriarchs, the forming of the nation of Israel, or the emerging of the Messiah Himself, God’s way of introducing His purposes and presence into our realm has always been through birth. Do not despise, therefore, or try to circumvent the birth pains in your life when God is bringing to pass something new in our spirits.

“Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.” James 1:2-4.

Final victory

Last but not least, five days following the Day of Atonement starts the Feast of Tabernacles. This longest and happiest of all of the Feasts of the Lord foreshadows the final and greatest celebration of this age when the Lord will return to earth and our God will abide and tabernacle among His people following the final harvest of the nations.

“And I heard a loud voice from the throne, saying, ‘Behold, the tabernacle of God is among men, and He shall dwell among them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be among them, and He shall wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there shall no longer be any death; there shall no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away.” Rev. 21:3-4. Let the grace of the Lord enrich your spirit as you go through this festive season, pondering and searching out the message of the Feasts.

The Waiting Game

The world can ignore but cannot escape the darkening storm surrounding the tiny State of Israel. The futile and often reckless international manipulations aiming to force peace in the Middle East will go on, even in the face of the undeterred flood of Islamic hatred.

Bible prophecy, though still viewed through a glass dimly, indicates that the present predicament Israel is facing will continue to intensify until it erupts into a full scale international crisis that will draw in all nations. The fate of the “God oriented” nations is still in the balance. Pray for your nation’s soul.

To the natural mind, these desperate and unending attempts toward peace generate hopelessness and distress as aspirations for a peaceful resolution between Israel and the Islamic world are dashed time and again against the harsh reality of irrational demonically induced hatred. The humanistic mind is frantically spinning to produce solutions, as ridiculous and pathetic as they may be, since it must have a hope to cling to. These efforts are in vain and are doomed to fail.

To the God-fearing mind, however, these times are but the inevitable passage forward; the struggle of a new born creation hatching out of its constricting shell. The only solution to the region’s predicament is found in God, and those who truly trust in Him are willing to wait on Him while watching and praying and serving His purpose in their own lives and spheres of influence.

The solution to the Middle East, and to the entire world’s problems, will not be found by conjuring up more man-made agreements or contracts. It will only be found by a greater concentration on and devotion to Jesus, the Son of God, and His word.

What Is This Season For You?

As you take stock and reflect on this recent year, do so with the eyes of faith. Remember that the harvest, which is the main theme of the season of the Fall Feasts, is brought in not by the harp, but by the sickle. In other words, the Lord is producing the best treasures in our lives during hard times of testing and endurance, rather than through the pleasant times of ease. Of course we prefer the smooth path, the enjoyable trouble free leisurely walk, yet that is not where the gold is produced.

Rather, as the Lord said, “I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire, that you may become rich, and white garments, that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes, that you may see.

“Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; be zealous therefore, and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him, and will dine with him, and he with Me. He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne.” Rev 3:18-21.

How to Pray?

Please cover Israel with fervent prayers in light of the grave dangers from without and the great upheaval from within. Should international pressure continue to mount, forcing Israel’s leaders to hand over most of Judea and Samaria to Palestinian hands in return for the feeble promise of peace, Israel’s population will experience even greater turmoil and civil unrest than it has so far.

Couple this with the mounting military tensions on Israel’s northern borders and the ticking time-bomb in the Hamas ruled Gaza strip, and the intercessor can begin to appreciate the unbelievable pressure Israel goes through. Just a few hours ago a rocket attack launched from the Hamas controlled Gaza Strip resulted in dozens of Israeli casualties (young military recruits), and the end to this reign of terror is not in sight. God, however, is bringing something tremendous to birth through these birth pains, and we must continue to pray according to His promises.

Also, please remember Israel’s captured soldiers in your prayers, Ron Arad, Gilad Shalit, Ehud Goldwasser, and Eldad Regev, as well as military personnel from other nations who have fallen into Islamic hands. Ask God to visit them by His Spirit and angel, and carry them to His throne in fervent prayer. As the word says, “Remember the prisoners, as though in prison with them, and those who are ill-treated, since you yourselves also are in the body.” Hebrews 13:3.

One New Man Call is a faith ministry supported by friends of the vision of Jew and Gentile dwelling as one in God’s Olive Tree. To learn more, to support this work, or to provide for the Believers in Israel through our ISRAEL FUND, contact us at the address below.

In grace,

Reuven & Mary Lou Doron

(C) 2007 One New Man Call

One New Man Call
P O Box 164
Hayfield, MN 55940 USA

Sep 12, 2007
Ministry Contact: OneNewManMail@aol.com

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Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, taken from the New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. www.Lockman.org