Growing as We Go

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God Regularly Gathers Us for Worship

God grows us, by establishing routines for worship. We grow, by obeying God’s plan, for our spiritual and physical growth. God established Three Main Festivals a year. One could say Four; However, the day of atonement was closely tied to the “Feast of the tabernacles” or “Feasts of the Booths.”

FESTIVALS Regular religious celebrations remembering God’s great acts of salvation in the history of His people. Traditionally called “feasts” in the English Bibles, these can conveniently be categorized according to frequency of celebration. Many of them were timed according to cycles of seven. The cycle of the week with its climax on the seventh day provided the cyclical basis for much of Israel’s worship; as the seventh day was observed, so was the seventh month (which contained four of the national festivals), and the seventh year, and the fiftieth year (the year of Jubilee), which followed seven cycles each of seven years. Not only were the festivals as a whole arranged with reference to the cycle of the week (Sabbath), two of them (the feast of unleavened bread and the feast of tabernacles) lasted for seven days each. Each began on the 15th of the month—at the end of two cycles of weeks and when the moon was full. Pentecost also was celebrated on the 15th of the month and began 50 days after the presentation of the firstfruits—the day following seven times seven weeks.

Passover The first of the three annual festivals was the Passover. It commemorated the final plague on Egypt when the firstborn of the Egyptians died and the Israelites were spared because of the blood smeared on their doorposts (Exod. 12:11, 21, 27, 43, 48). Passover took place on the 14th day (at evening) of the first month (Lev. 23:5). (Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary)

During NT times large crowds gathered in Jerusalem to observe this annual celebration. Jesus was crucified during the Passover event. He and His disciples ate a Passover meal together on the eve of His death. During this meal Jesus said, “This is My body,” and “this cup is the new covenant in My blood” (Luke 22:17, 19–20 HCSB). The NT identifies Christ with the Passover sacrifice: “For Christ our Passover has been sacrificed” (1 Cor. 5:7 HCSB).

Feast of Weeks The second of the three annual festivals was Pentecost, also called the feast of weeks (Exod. 34:22; Deut. 16:10, 16; 2 Chron. 8:13), the feast of harvest (Exod. 23:16), and the day of firstfruits (Num. 28:26; cp. Exod. 23:16; 34:22; Lev. 23:17). It was celebrated seven complete weeks, or 50 days, after Passover (Lev. 23:15–16; Deut. 16:9); therefore, it was given the name Pentecost . . . The feast was concluded by the eating of communal meals to which the poor, the stranger, and the Levites were invited.
The Day of Atonement [begins] the third annual festival. [It] came on the 10th day of the seventh month (Tishri-Sept./Oct.) and the fifth day before the feast of tabernacles (Lev. 16:1–34; Num. 29:7–11).
According to Lev. 23:27–28, four main elements comprise this most significant feast.
First, it was to be a “holy convocation,” drawing the focus of the people to the altar of divine mercy. The holy One of Israel called the people of Israel to gather in His presence and give their undivided attention to Him.
Second, they were to “humble their souls” (“afflict your souls,” Lev. 23:27 KJV). This was explained by later tradition to indicate fasting and repentance. Israel understood that this was a day for mourning over their sins. The seriousness of this requirement is reiterated in Lev. 23:29, “If there is any person who will not humble himself on this same day, he shall be cut off from his people” (Lev. 23:29 NASB).
Third, offerings are central to the Day of Atonement. The Bible devotes an entire chapter (Lev. 16) to them; they are also listed in Num. 29:7–11. In addition to these, when the day fell on a sabbath, the regular Sabbath offerings were offered.
The fourth and final element of the day involved the prohibition of labor. The Day of Atonement was a “sabbath of rest” (Lev. 23:32), and the Israelites were forbidden to do any work at all. If they disobeyed, they were liable to capital punishment (Lev. 23:30).

According to Heb. 9–10 this ritual is a symbol of the atoning work of Christ, our great high Priest, who did not need to make any sacrifice for Himself but shed His own blood for our sins. As the high priest of the OT entered the holy of holies with the blood of sacrificial animals, Jesus entered heaven itself to appear on our behalf in front of the Father (Heb. 9:11–12).

Feast of Tabernacles . . . combined the ingathering of the labor of the field (Exod. 23:16), the fruit of the earth (Lev. 23:39), the ingathering of the threshing floor and winepress (Deut. 16:13), and the dwelling in booths (or “tabernacles”), which were to be joyful reminders to Israel (Lev. 23:41; Deut. 16:14). The “booth” in Scripture is not an image of privation and misery but of protection, preservation, and shelter from heat and storm (Pss. 27:5; 31:20; Isa. 4:6). The rejoicing community included family, servants, widows, orphans, Levites, and sojourners (Deut. 16:13–15).

Every Israelite was to live for seven days in these during the festival, in commemoration of when their fathers lived in such booths after their exodus from Egypt (Lev. 23:40; Neh. 8:15). The dedication of Solomon’s temple took place at the feast (1 Kings 8:2).

God Regularly Gathers Us for Worship

God plans routine worship, so we remember wha He has accomplished in the past; so we look for He is doing in the present; and so We are assured of our hope in the future. Worship focuses on Jesus’ sacrifice for us, our ability to hear and respond to God’s call to salvation, and to God’s provision. Worship is God’s goal for growing us in His grace. To Grow is to better Know God, and Our relationship with Father Son and Holy Spirit.
Application: We must teach this to our kids and the next generation. Why is this important?
Walter E. Williams writes in the Daily Signal: Colleges have been around for centuries. College students have also been around for centuries. Yet, college administrators assume that today’s students have needs that were unknown to their predecessors. Those needs include diversity and equity personnel, with massive budgets to accommodate.
Diversity officials are a growing part of a college bureaucracy structure that outnumbers faculty by 2 to 2.5, depending on the college. According to “The Campus Diversity Swarm,” an article from Mark Pulliam, a contributing editor at Law and Liberty, which appeared in the City Journal, diversity people assist in the cultivation of imaginary grievances of an ever-growing number of “oppressed” groups.
Unless the cycle of promoting and nursing imaginary grievances is ended, diversity bureaucracies will take over our colleges and universities, supplanting altogether the goal of higher education.
“Diversity” is the highest goal of students and professors who openly detest those with whom they disagree. These people support the very antithesis of higher education with their withering attacks on free speech.
Both in and out of academia, the content of a man’s character is no longer as important as the color of his skin, his sex, his sexual preferences, or his political loyalties. That’s a vision that spells tragedy for our nation.
(https://www.dailysignal.com/2020/01/01/how-colleges-dupe-parents-and-taxpayers).
Who is raising our children? How is shaping the world view of our next generation?
God desires we make worship a routine. We may miss church some weeks, but that is not to be the norm. We should schedule daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly worship activities. We should be found in worship more than out of worship. Worship is the discovery of God and our relationship with Him through experience. If we are going to experience spiritual Growth we have to be present. God’s Plan involves participation, and bringing the next generation into knowledge of Him.
We have to recognize the problem with routine! A routine, by definition becomes so oordinary that we become custom of taking it for granted. Been there done that; I got the tee shirt.

God Interrupts Our Ordinary, to Reveal the Extraordinary

The family mistakenly thought Jesus would be taken care of by the community.
Walter William’s article reminds us of the dangers of allowing culture and academia care for our children.
“Diversity” is the highest goal of students and professors who openly detest those with whom they disagree. These people support the very antithesis of higher education with their withering attacks on free speech.
Both in and out of academia, the content of a man’s character is no longer as important as the color of his skin, his sex, his sexual preferences, or his political loyalties. That’s a vision that spells tragedy for our nation.

Jesus Never Leaves Us like He Finds Us

It is not how we fail, but how we respond to our failures that reveals our desire for spiritual maturity. Are you amazed at how God is growing You in wisdom, statue, and favor?

God Grows Us as We Go

Jesus grows in wisdom, Statue (maturity), and favor (grace).
To grow is in the imperfect aspect, describing continual action. προκοπτω: To change one’s state for the better, by advancing or making progress.
Are you making progress in your knowledge of God and you relationship?
Wisdom: The capacity to understand and, as a result, to act wisely. Wisdom in the application of information. Godly wisdom is Knowledge of God gained and then applied to everyday life.
Physical and spiritual maturity. Physical growth is passive, spiritual growth is active on our part.
Favorable attitude toward someone. Jesus’ application of GOd’s design Well pleased God and Man.
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