Leviticus 23:2
Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies.’ (NIV)
Today’s Reading: Leviticus 23:1-44
On January 22, we learned that God named himself YHWH when He introduced himself to Moses in the burning bush. We also learned that Jesus claimed to be YHWH in a confrontation with the Pharisees recorded in John 8:58. With that as context, the writers of the gospels also claimed that Jesus is YHWH.
Obviously we see John come right out and say that Jesus was God in the first sentence of his gospel. But the other writers also claim this but it’s literally lost in translation. The New Testament word for YHWH is the Greek word Kyrios. Kyrios can be used as a title to address a person of higher status like lord or sir or it can refer a master of property or slaves. But often when referring to Jesus, Kyrios means YHWH.
Take for example the passage, “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord” (Luke 2:11). Luke is essentially recording the angels as saying here, “Today in the town of David, a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah who is God Himself.” This was a profound statement that we often miss when reading our English Bibles.
Because Jesus is YHWH, we often miss other times in the Old Testament where Jesus is the object of description when the name YHWH is used. This is the case in our Scripture today. “The Lord said to Moses, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of the Lord, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies’”” (Lev 23:1-2). God tells Moses that He is appointing festivals for the Israelites to celebrate and these festivals are Jesus’ festivals. In other words, “These are my appointed festivals, the appointed festivals of Jesus.”
The Lord appointed seven festivals for Israel to celebrate:
- Passover
- Unleavened bread
- First Fruits
- Weeks (Pentecost)
- Trumpets
- Atonement
- Tabernacles
We will dig into each festival individually over the coming weeks. But as an overview, Jesus fulfilled the first three of these festivals during his first coming. The Festival of Pentecost was fulfilled upon the arrival of the Holy Spirit and the birth of the Church. These first four festivals are the spring festivals. The final three festivals are the fall festivals and have yet to be fulfilled. But since God is faithful, it’s only a matter of time. And Jesus will return!
Christ in the Old Testament 
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