| (Copyright 10-16-2024) by Warren Zehrung (Little Rock, Arkansas) |
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| Pull up Stakes Greetings to all our beloved brethren, Today is the First Day of the Feast of Tabernacles. It pictures our journey to the Promised Land—which is ultimately the Kingdom of God. What does the phrase “pull up stakes” mean? It means to take all the things that you own and go on a journey. You go somewhere else and start all over again. You leave your home, job, or country. For example, We’ve lived here for years, but now it’s time to ‘pull up stakes.’ This expression alludes to the stakes that once held your tent in place. The Calling and Promise to Abraham God began working with Abraham by sending him on a journey while he lived in temporary dwellings. Genesis 12:1-2 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: Genesis 12:9 And Abram journeyed (nâsa‛ means – pulled up tent pins – pull up stakes), going on still toward the south. To this day people say, “pull up stakes,” when they are moving on. Hebrews 11:9 By faith [Abraham] sojourned [pulling up stakes] in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: Genesis 33:17 And Jacob journeyed (nâsa‛) to Succoth, and built him an house, and made booths for his cattle: therefore the name of the place is called Succoth [sûkkôth – booths]. Journey to the Feast Brethren, God instructs us also to journey to the Feast of Tabernacles and dwell in temporary booths each year. Leviticus 23:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, Concerning the Feasts of the LORD, which ye shall proclaim to be holy convocations, even these are my Feasts. Leviticus 23:34 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, The fifteenth day of this seventh month shall be the Feast of Tabernacles for seven days unto the LORD. Leviticus 23:42-43 Ye shall dwell in booths seven days; all that are Israelites born shall dwell in booths: That your generations may know that I made the children of Israel to dwell in booths, when I brought them out of the land of Egypt: I am the LORD your God. Living in temporary booths is meant to commemorate the Israelites’ time wandering in the wilderness after leaving Egypt, where they dwelt in temporary makeshift booths along the way to the Promised Land. It also pictures the time Jesus will establish His Father’s Kingdom over all the earth coming to fruition. He taught us to pray to our Father for this day to come: Matthew 6:10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. (Luke 11:2) The Lord Will Pour Out His Spirit In the Millennium, God’s indwelling Spirit will be upon all those who go up to Jerusalem from year to year to praise the name of the LORD our God. The prophet Joel’s writings speak of an abundance of figs, grapes, wine, oil, fruit, and wheat, with appropriate rainfall in due season during the Millennium. Undoubtedly, the land will yield her fruit as it did before the curse brought on by Adam and Eve’s sin (Genesis 3:17). Let’s read these few verses with the expanded spiritual understanding that is called for: Joel 2:22 …The pastures of the wilderness do spring forth, for the tree bears her fruit, the fig tree and the vine do yield their strength. Joel 2:23 Be glad then, ye children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God: for He hath given you the former rain moderately, and He will cause to come down for you the rain, the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. Joel 2:24 And the floors shall be full of wheat, and the vats shall overflow with wine and oil. Joel 2:26 And ye shall eat in plenty, and be satisfied, and praise the name of the LORD your God, that has dealt wondrously with you: and my people shall never be ashamed. Joel 2:27 And ye shall know that I am in the midst of Israel, and that I am the LORD your God, and none else: and my people shall never be ashamed. Most certainly, the Millennial Promised Land will be a fruitful paradise, but Joel is speaking metaphorically of a much greater spiritual fulfillment than God’s plentiful agricultural produce. Joel 2:28-29 It shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my Spirit. Jesus says, “I am in the midst of Israel” (:27). Yes, He will be present as King of kings and Lord of lords. All those grains and vines speak to the resurrected living and ruling, divine providential Savior who will have guided and provided for each of us as we journeyed in faith toward His Kingdom. There will be a universal abundance of the fruit of His Spirit poured out upon all flesh in the form of the love of God, and love of our fellowman, which will engender peace on earth. The inhabitants of the land will live in joyful forbearance of one another. The societal norm will be a genuine kind respect of others, in fidelity, and with self-discipline. What a wonderful world! Christ will start immediately in the Millennium to reeducate all the people of the world through His annual Feasts. The entire world will come to know that Jesus Christ is the Lord, and that God’s Master Plan pictures the way to physical blessings and spiritual salvation. Deuteronomy 16:14 You shalt rejoice in thy Feast [of Tabernacles], You, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite, the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy gates. Brethren, the Feast of Tabernacles pictures the goal of our Christian journey when we will reign with Jesus Christ. We will have just become resurrected Saints! “You shalt rejoice” is an understatement. The Feast is a joyful occasion – we’ve heard that a thousand times. I believe that “Joyful” comes a little short of how we should expect our resurrection to be: Brethren, we will be ecstatic! There will be overwhelming happiness and overpowering joyful excitement. Our Christian journey will have been attained. God speaks of a hundredfold increase in us – but I believe the change in us will be a near infinite increase. How joyous will that be? Deuteronomy 16:15 Seven days shalt thou keep a solemn Feast [of Tabernacles] unto the LORD thy God in the place which the LORD shall choose: because the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thine increase, and in all the works of thine hands, therefore thou shalt surely rejoice. The Feast is a foretaste of the prosperity, happiness, joy and universal peace that will exist worldwide under the righteous rule of Jesus Christ. Adherence to God’s laws and way of life will make the world tomorrow a supremely happy place—a veritable spiritual utopia! The societal norm in general will be to exercise Justice, Mercifulness, Faithfulness and Godly Love, not only with the resurrected Saints, but with all the people of the earth (Matthew 23:23, John 7:24). A Picture of the Millennium by the Prophet Amos Amos 9:13 Behold, the days come, says the LORD, that the plowman shall overtake the reaper, and the treader of grapes him that sows seed; and the mountains shall drop sweet wine, and all the hills shall melt. More and more fruitful, viable farmland will be reclaimed from marginal acreages – and placed into bountiful production. For the Church of God brethren, please recognize that luscious presentations of the bountiful produce are literal, but also meant to represent the much greater reality of spiritual fruit that will abound in us. Brethren, it is God’s desire and will that we dwell with Him forever—no matter how many times we have to pull up stakes on our journey to the Kingdom. The Children of God.net Working together around the world Bringing the message of hope to a world in turmoil SabbathCoG.org Listen to Live Services at 2:00 PM Central Time on the Holy Days by calling the Free Conference Call dial-in number, (667) 770-1685 and entering the Participant access code: 696903# The playback number is (667) 770-1688. The playback Reference Number for the Feast is 416#. We wish everyone a tremendous Feast of Tabernacles. Your brother in Christ, Warren M. Zehrung ———————————————————————————————————- See Warren Zehrung’s other articles at: Zehrung, Warren – Church of God, Bismarck (church-of-god-bismarck.org) Reprinted with permission from: Sabbath Church of God http://childrenofgod.net/ ———————————————————————————————————- |
| Iron Sharpening Iron In regard to: Countdown 469 Article by Warren Zehrung Comments by Laura Lee (Bismarck, North Dakota) |
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| This was a great overview of the Feast of Tabernacles; however, we do not believe the elect of God will be resurrected on the Feast of Trumpets as many people do per the teaching of the Worldwide Church of God. Pentecost is called the Feast of First Fruits for a reason. The reason is that it will be the harvest of the elect of God. It is right in the name of the Feast. Christ is only coming partway to earth at the Feast of First Fruits (Pentecost) and He comes with His angels to gather the elect of God both dead and alive from the four winds (four quarters) of the earth. Christ and the angels of God will accompany the elect to heaven for the marriage supper of the Lamb. In the meantime, the bowls of wrath will be poured out on the earth. On Trumpets is when Christ and the elect will come to earth to start setting up the Kingdom of God. |
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