I mentioned before that I am a bit of a prophecy addict and that I am one who believes in the pretribulation Rapture of the Church.
This is when the Lord Jesus calls all believers up to meet Him in the air to return to heaven to celebrate the Wedding Feast of the Lamb as recorded in Revelation 19.
I also hold to the prophetic pattern of the Jewish Feasts where the Spring feasts – Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits -correlate to Jesus’ first coming; the Feast of Pentacost represents the birth of the Church; and the Fall Feasts – Trumpets, Atonement, and Tabernacles – point to the Rapture, the Tribulation, and Second Coming of Christ and His Millennial Reign.
Now, a number of folks have tried to name the date of the Rapture only to look like fools.
Speaking of the timing of the Rapture, Jesus said in Matthew 24:36, “But of the day and the hour knows no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.”
So, from this verse comes the doctrine of Imminence – Jesus could come for His Bride at any moment.
And, that’s true when you look at the Jewish wedding process where the groom arrives to snatch away his bride at a time she does not know beforehand. The bride and her attendants were expected to be ready no matter what time the groom arrived for her.
What I recently learned about the Feast of Trumpets is that it is the only Feast with an uncertain start time.
The reason is that the Jewish calendar is based on the Lunar System.
So, months begin only at the first sighting of the new moon.
In ancient times, a 48 hour window was given by the priests for people to arrive for the feast and prepare.
Two priests were assigned the task of watching for the first sliver of the new moon to appear in the night sky.
Once they sighted the New Moon, they would report to the High Priest and the Sanhedrin, the New Moon was declared ‘sanctified,’ and the order to blow the Trumpet was given.
Thus, no one knew the exact day or the hour of the sounding of the first trumpet marking the start of the Feast of Trumpets.
Because cosmic signs were key to this Feast, it’s no stretch to see why Jesus indicated in Luke 21 that cosmic signs will precede the Rapture.
We’ve heard a lot about the Blood moons over the last two years. Are they an indicator? They may be.
Either way, as believers, we need to be ready every day for the Trumpet and upward call of our Bridegroom, Jesus Christ.
Maranatha! Come quickly, Lord Jesus!
Blessings!
Robyn