SEASONS - HOW TO BEGIN TO CELEBRATE THE FEAST OF TRUMPETS

CELEBRATING ROSH HASHANAH AS A CHRISTIAN
(Writen by Sheila Gail Landgraf)

Sunday night, October 2, 2016 at sunset begins the Feast of Trumpets for 2016 (also called Rosh Hashanah.)  

The Holy Days of God found in the scriptures of both the Old and New Testaments were observed by Jesus Christ and the first Christians of the early church.  It is sad to me that most Christian churches today tend to overlook these festivals of God.  Jesus FULFILLED the first four spring festivals and WILL FULFILL the last three fall festivals.  He did not do away with them. 

Why would Jesus abolish His Father's appointed times?  

He kept these days with joy and thanksgiving, and so should we.  This is yet another beautiful piece of the puzzle of Christian history that God's people have been robbed of.  

If you are a Christian believer and you have decided you want to honor God by keeping His Holy Days in your life, I have some good news for you; you do not have to become Jewish!   You do not have to become a member of a Messianic congregation!  You do not have to make a formal announcement to the world or get permission from all of your acquaintances and fellow church members who may or may not have the same yearning or desire! You don't have to do any of those things!

It is all really very simple.  You just trust God and start to observe His special Holy Days.   

Loving God is not complicated.  Follow your heart.  Your home is your sanctuary and your body is your Temple.  If The Holy Spirit dwells inside of your heart, then you are free to celebrate these awesome days!  

If you do not know where to start, why not begin with The Feast of Trumpets that begins in 2016 on October 2nd at sunset?   Prepare a festive meal ahead of time, right in your own home.  Have some bread and wine, and follow the simple service outlined in this blog with your family and/or friends.  

There was a time when I did not know what to do either.  From years of study I put together the following outline.  You can do your own studying of the scriptures and history and make your own program if you wish.  Nothing is chisiled in stone.  This is presented simply to make things easier for you.  It is not a universal form used all over the world, but it is good and proper for the occasion and it may be helpful to your family as you try to implement the commandments of God in your own household.

Yes, you may make mistakes, that is why we have grace.  If it is all new to you, it might be good to prayerfully observe the first time with just you and God and see what God shows you.  

If you don't understand something; study to show yourself approved, a workman who needeth not be ashamed.  Learn as you go, just as you learned to pray, to witness, to worship, to study the scriptures, to sing and follow God in all other areas of your life.  God will show you what you need to know when you are ready, but you have to be willing to step out and begin.  The Israelites had to take that first step into the water in order to cross the Red Sea.  Have faith!

I promise you if you set the time aside and honor God with the honest and sincere intentions of your heart, God will teach you everything that you need to know as you go along. He will continue to teach you something new and wonderful every year after - forever!  These feast days go on forever and ever.  How awesome is that?

Remember that in this age we are under grace.  If you make a mistake God will forgive you.  If you never try and He is prompting you to do so - which would be the worst end?  Don't miss your blessing because you fail to trust in God and depend on Him to lead you with love and grace.  

Here is a very simple outline of a service my family has observed in years of the past.  I borrowed much of it from another simple worship service outline, and I pieced parts of several favorite services' outlines together for my family to use. You will find yourself doing the same thing as God leads you and speaks to your family.  It is perfectly okay to create a format that your family will relate to.  Feel free to use this one as an outline or a guide to get started, or feel free to write your own from scratch from the beginning.   

 So stop struggling with any fearful legalistic thoughts and be set free to worship!  Shanna Tova!

A Service for The Feast of Trumpets

MESSIANIC YOM TERUAH NIGHT SERVICE

With the fall holy days we cross a bridge from those things that have already happened to those things that are destined to happen.  The Feast of Trumpets is symbolic of the beautiful return of Christ for His Bride!  It is a rehearsal every year until we actually come to The Marriage Supper of the Lamb.


OPENING SONG:
Dance With Me 
(Pick any appropriate song that your family enjoys)


OPENING PRAYER

(It is nice for everyone to repeat this together in unison as we begin)

Our Father, Hallowed, Glorified and Exalted is Your Name. We give honor to Your Holy Name, Yahweh. The whole world trembled at the sound of the Shofar - at Your majestic Presence at Sinai. Creation shook in awe of You when You thundered from the mount and spoke Your holy words in tongues of fire to Your people.

Let the shofar we blow this night resound with the heavenly Shofar, in anticipation of that future festal shout of the Archangel, when the final Shofar will be blown and You will sound the battle-cry and gather Your people unto Yourself.

 SOUNDING OF THE SHOFAR

(You can find several good shofar sounds on You Tube.  Just go out and find your favorite one and use it here and during the other times that call for the shofar)

Prayer of Father/Leader:

Sovereign of the Universe, You have instructed us to sound the shofar on this day as it is written, "Blow the shofar at the new moon, at the covered time for our feast day, because it is a decree for Israel, a judgment day for the God of Jacob." Psalms 81: 3-4

Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe, Who has sanctified us with Your commandments and in the blood of Y'shua the Messiah, and has commanded us to hear the sound of the shofar.

May it be Your will that the tekiah-shevarim-Teruah-tekiah blasts that we have sounded tonight be embroidered into the heavenly curtain by the appointed angel and be accounted like the prayers of Elijah, through Y'shua our High Priest and minister of the Inner Sanctuary, so that Your mercy may be upon us. Blessed are You, Yahweh, Lord of mercy and grace.” [adapted from The Complete Artscroll Machzor, Rosh Hashanah, Mesorah publications, page 437.]

THE SHOFAR SOUND IS HEARD.

KINDLING THE FESTIVAL LIGHTS (Prayer and candle lighting by the Wife and Mother of the home. Simply say the prayer and light the candles.)

Blessed art You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe, Who has sanctified us with Your commandments in the blood of Y'shua the Messiah, and commanded us to kindle the Festival lights.

 FATHER OF THE HOME OR LEADER OF THE GROUP: "Give unto Yahweh, O you mighty ones, Give unto Yahweh glory and strength. Give unto Yahweh the glory due His Name; worship Yahweh in the beauty of holiness. The God of glory thunders; Yahweh is over many waters. The voice of Yahweh is powerful; the voice of Yahweh is full of majesty." Psalm 29: 1-2, 4

SANCTIFYING THE NEW MOON: Kiddush Lavanah

Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe, whose Word created the heavens, whose breath created all that they contain. Statutes and seasons You set for them as faithful witnesses in the heavens, that they should not deviate from their ordained task. They all do Your will as their Creator and glorify You.

Blessed are You Yahweh our God for renewing the earth and sustaining and preserving us in life for Your glory. Blessed are You, O Yahweh for Your covenant of faithfulness and mercy to our father David which endures forever, as the sun and the moon before You.

May we shine as lights in this world and reflect Your glory even as the moon shines and reflects the glory of the sun, through Y'shua the Messiah, the Son of David, the true Light of the World.

All Hail to the King of Israel Who lives forever! We proclaim the majesty, honor, glory and dominion of The One Who sits upon the throne. For, "You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created." (Revelation 4:11)

Our God, and God of our fathers, may this remembrance of Messiah, the Son of David ascend before Your throne and be accepted before You for deliverance, life and peace on this Day of Remembrance for all Your people. Draw all Your people unto Yourself, for You are a gracious and merciful God. B'hem Y'shua HaMaschiach, Amein (through Y'shua the Messiah)

  
SONG:  To Him Who Sits On The Throne
(Use any appropriate music your family enjoys)

FAMILY/CONGREGATIONAL PRAYER

Father/Leader: Bless Yahweh Who is blessed.

Whole Family/Congregation: Bless Yahweh Who is blessed forever.

SCRIPTURE READING

(Designate a person ahead of time to give this reading.)

"Yahweh said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites: 'On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with shofar blasts. Do no regular work, but present an offering made to Yahweh by fire." 'It is a day for you to sound the shofar." (Leviticus 23:23-25; Numbers 29:1)

"This is the day which Yahweh has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalms 118:24 "Seek Yahweh while He may be found, call you upon Him while He is near" Isaiah 55: 6 Y'shua said, "I and my Father are one." John 10:30

Let us draw near to Yahweh, in unity with Y'shua our Messiah and seek His mercy and forgiveness. (Time of silent prayer and meditation)

PRAYER

(To be read by someone chosen ahead of time)

 O Lord, open my lips that my mouth might declare Your praise. Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, God of our fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; great, mighty, and revered God, Who is Lord over all; Who bestows loving kindness and has graciously given us Y'shua the Messiah as our Redeemer, to provide our atonement; and will bring back the outcasts of Israel and redeem them unto Himself, for Your Holy Name's sake. Thank you for the gift of life, and for inscribing us in the Lamb's book of life, through the sacrifice of Your Son Y'shua, the Lamb of God, Who takes away the sin of the world.

You sustain the living with kindness and revive the dead with great mercy; You support all who fall and heal the sick; You set the captives free, and will keep faith with those who sleep in the dust.

Who is like unto You, mighty God? Who resembles You, O King of the Universe? You bring death and restore life, and cause Salvation to flourish. You are Holy and Your Name is Holy, and holy beings praise You daily.

You, O Yahweh our God, have graciously given us this day of Remembrance, a day for the blowing of the shofar, a holy festival in remembrance of the past exodus from Egypt, and a type and shadow of our future exodus from this world when we will be gathered together unto Y'shua in the clouds to be with Him forever.

"God has gone up with a shout, Yahweh with the sound of a shofar For the Most High is awesome, He is a great King over all the earth" He will ascend the throne of His glory! (Psalm 47:5,2)

SONG:  SHOUT TO THE LORD/I WORSHIP YOU ALMIGHTY GOD
(Pick any songs that are appropriate for your family)

  

Blow Three sets of blasts on the Shofar

Congregation: respond "Amen"

 Father/Leader: "Make a joyful noise before Yahweh . . with trumpets and the sound of the shofar. Shout joyfully before Yahweh, the King .. .. .. for He is coming to judge the earth" (Psalm 98: 4, 6, 9) 

Congregation: respond "Amen"

 "Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; steadfast love and faithfulness go before You. Blessed are the people who know the festal shout ["the sound of the shofar"], who walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance, who exult in Your name all the day, and extol Your righteousness." Psalm 89:14-16

Blow Three sets of blasts on the Shofar Finalized by the Great Blast (try to hold it for at least one full minute)

Congregation: respond "Amen"

Designated Reader 2: Reads:

1 Thessalonians 4:13-17

Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven,with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.

New International Version (NIV)

 RESPONSIVE READING

Father/Leader: Give unto Yahweh, O you mighty ones,

Family/Congregation: We give unto Yahweh glory and strength

Father/Leader: Give unto Yahweh the glory due to His name;

Family/Congregation: We worship You in the beauty of holiness.

Father/Leader: The voice of Yahweh is powerful;

Family/Congregation: Your voice is full of majesty.

Father/Leader: Yahweh sat enthroned at the Flood and He sits as King forever.

Family/Congregation: And in His temple everyone says, "Glory!"

Father/Leader: Yahweh will give strength to His people

Family/Congregation: Yahweh will bless His people with peace.

  

Father/Leader: All the living shall ever thank You and praise Your Holy Name, Oh Yahweh, You are our salvation.

May it please You,Yahweh of Hosts to bless Your
 people Israel at all times and at all hours. Call us home, Oh Yahweh, to Your Holy City, New Jerusalem, where peace shall dwell eternally within Your gates.

Blow set of Shofar Blasts

 MESSAGE (This is just a sample of a message that applies to the subject of the day - you may use your own and this should be different every year as God leads.)

(Taken from Ephesians 5:1-20)

In the traditional Jewish service of Yom Teruah, the Shofar was blown 100 times. The blowing of the Shofar is firstly a call to alert and awaken the conscience of man and initiate his response to the call of the Shofar to come into His Presence.

The Shofar pierces the darkness of this world's spiritual atmosphere which keeps man bound under the deceptions of the god of this world and penetrates the heart of man for him to hear the sounds of the Shofar - that is, the message of the Shofar. It makes a way for the Word of the Almighty to penetrate the heart for the purpose of bringing man to an acknowledgement of his need of repentance against a holy God.

The Jewish Rabbi Maimonides explained the meaning of the sounds of the shofar as follows: "Awake, you sleepers from your slumber, and rouse you from your lethargy.  Scrutinize your deeds and return in repentance. Remember your Creator, you who forget eternal truth in the trifles of the hour, who go astray all your years after vain illusions which can neither profit nor deliver. Look well into your souls and mend your ways and your actions; let each one of you forsake his evil path and his unworthy purpose, and return to God, so that He may have mercy upon you."

Paul reiterated that in speaking to the Ephesians when he counseled them to be imitators of him and "walk in love as Messiah also loved us and has given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.  But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not be named among you, as is appropriate for the saints of God; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not right, but rather giving of thanks in all things to God. For this you know that no fornicator, unclean immoral person, nor a covetous man who is an idolater of the things of this world, has any inheritance in the kingdom of the Messiah and God. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon those who are disobedient. Therefore do not be partakers with them. . . . . Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness or those who practice them, but rather expose them. . . . . All things that are exposed are made manifest by the light. Therefore He says, "Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, and Messiah will give you light." See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise people, redeeming the time, because the days are evil." (paraphrased and expanded from Ephesians 5: 1-16)

The apostle Peter also exhorts us to consider what manner of person we ought to be in holy conduct and godliness with the approaching Day of God in which the world and everything in it will be dissolved, saying, "Therefore, beloved, looking forward to these things, be diligent to be found by Him in peace, without spot and blameless;" (2 Peter 3:11-14)

The day of Yom Teruah is understood prophetically to herald the beginning of the Tribulation period. The Shofar blown on this day is called the Last Shofar/Trumpet. The Shofar had been blowing in the Temple for thirty days previously, to call the people to prepare, and on Yom Kippur the Great Shofar will be blown which will herald the coming of Messiah. The message of the Shofar on Yom Teruah is an alarm to prepare for the coming judgment.

On the memorial of this day, the Messiah will ascend the throne for His coronation as King of Kings and the thrones will be set for judgment. We need to watch and pray that we may be counted worthy to escape the coming judgment and be found of Him in peace at His return, whenever that may be. (Luke 21:36 The blowing of the Shofar on Yom Teruah symbolizes the prevalence of Mercy over Judgment for those who come in repentance and seek His forgiveness for all their sins.

John says that if we say we have not sinned we deceive ourselves and His truth is not in us. We need to allow the light of His Word to shine into our hearts and examine us according to His holiness. (1 John 1: 5-8)

Our eternal destiny will be decided by our spiritual condition when this final day arrives. Yom Teruah is different from every other Feast, in that it has no prescribed date and is dependent on the arrival of the new moon which is concealed from view. So that day will come upon us, if we are not prepared and catch us unaware. We need to watch and be sober and keep our spiritual garments white and unspotted from this world.

 (Play the song – Fine Linen or any other music that you wish to chose, have liturgical dancing if desired)

KIDDUSH

Blessing of Kiddush - Leader holding cup:

Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe, Creator of the fruit of the vine. Amen.

Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe, who has chosen us from among all nations and has sanctified us by the blood of Y'shua. Blessed are You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe, who sanctifies the Festival of Trumpets.

Blessing of Challah –

Leader holding bread: Blessed art You, Yahweh our God, King of the Universe, Who brings forth bread from the earth. Amen. Baruch Atah Yahweh, Elochenu Melach ha-olam, ha-motsee lechem min haarets. Amen.

May we be inscribed for a good year as those who are trusting in Y'shua the Messiah for eternal life.

OFFERING FOR THE NEEDY

Nehemiah 8:10 "Go your way, eat the fat, drink the sweet, and send portions to those for whom nothing has been prepared, for this day is holy to Yahweh. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength."

If you wish you may have prepared baskets of goodies to be delivered to others during the Holy Days.  It is customary to let the little children participate and take the gifts to others.

Your family may wish to discuss a way they can contribute together to help someone less fortunate or in need over the next two days.  Plan a quiet humble way to be a blessing to someone else during this season. It doesn't have to be monetary, the gift of time and service is a good way to serve others too.

PARTAKING OF THE YEAR'S GOODNESS

(Festive celebration of God's goodness by the partaking of apples dipped in honey, followed by a festive meal of sweet dishes.)

This is the appetizer to your festival meal!

Father/Leader:

May it be Your will, O Yahweh, God of our fathers, to grant us a blessed and prosperous Year. (Everyone partakes of apple slices dipped into honey)

"Your mercy O Yahweh is in the heavens; Your faithfulness to the clouds. Your righteousness is like the great mountains; Your judgements are like a great deep; O Yahweh, You preserve man and beast.

How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings. They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your House, and You give them drink from the rivers of Your pleasures. For with You is the fountain of life; In Your light we see light." Amen (Psalm 36: 5-9)

We trust Yahweh our God, to soon behold Your majestic glory when all abominations shall be removed and all iniquity shall be at an end. Then shall the world be perfected under the rule of our Mighty King and all mankind shall call upon Your name through Y'shua our Lord. For to You every knee must bow and every tongue declare that You are God, our everlasting Father.

May Your kingdom be established in our time and may we see the kingdom of David's greater son be established forever. For then shall the words be fulfilled, "Yahweh shall be King forever over all the earth; and on that day Yahweh shall be One, and his name One." Hallelujah! (Psalm 104:1-2, Deuteronomy 4:39, Psalm 10:16, Zechariah 14:9)

(Maybe play some appropriate instrumental music during the meal??????)

SHARING THE FESTIVE MEAL

After the meal, don't forget:

THE PARTING BLESSING

·         "Be inscribed and sealed for a good year!

·         To a man - "Leshana tova tikateiv v'techateim!"

·         To a woman - "Leshana tova tikateivi vetichatemi!"

Note: It is customary to prepare for this occasion by a ritual immersion in water beforehand. White "Kittels" (outer garment) are traditionally worn to symbolise the person's faith in Yahweh God to extend His mercy toward them on the basis of their repentance.