In Your eternal wisdom Adonai, You commanded Israel to go up to Jerusalem thrice every year on Your appointed feast days. Each year, in keeping with Thy ordinance, all twelve tribes faithfully went up to Mount Zion as a witness of Your faithfulness to give thanks to Your name. Seeing each tribe gather together as brothers, they celebrated Passover; and Shavuot; and lived in booths (or tents) in the fall. They recognized that Your promise to them as a nation—Your chosen people—was irrevocable and rejoiced each time.
Today, there is no temple and Your people are scattered. And though the devil has cleverly convinced people who have believed in the Messiah to forget Your appointed days and ignorantly (sometimes even knowingly) celebrate pagan holidays instead, with Santa Claus and Christmas trees and Easter eggs; a time will come when You will once again gather Your chosen ones together (even those who once were Gentiles but have now been brought near and made part of the covenant You made with Israel) and in accordance with Your promises to the prophets, they will be scattered no more. In the Millennial reign of the Messiah they will celebrate Your appointed days rejoicing and giving You thanks because of Your mercy and faithfulness.
I wait in anticipation Adonai; but till then I will commemorate Your appointed days, the way You have commanded us, by keeping those days separated as holy and remembering their significance in Yeshua.
Song of Ascents comprises of a collection of 15 psalms from
Psalm 120 to 134. While there are a number of suggestions as to what the
phrase, “Song of Ascents” could mean, one thought is that these psalms were
sung by Israel as they went up to Jerusalem to celebrate the three annual
feasts that the Lord had commanded (Lev. 23; Ex. 23:14).
We have just concluded the Feast of Unleavened Bread which
started on the 15th day of the first month of the Biblical calendar
(or on the evening of March 30, 2018). During this seven day feast, Israel went
up to Jerusalem singing these Songs of Ascent. We have now completed 19 days of counting up to the fifty
days to Shavuot (Lev. 23:15-16), the next feast day of the Lord.
My purpose of posting a verse from these psalms each day (during
these days between the Feast of Unleavened Bread and the Feast of Weeks
(Shavuot) which in Greek is called Pentecost) is so that we too—if you are a
son (or daughter) of Israel, even though you once may have been a Gentile but
now through the great grace shown to us by the Father and through the blood of
the Messiah Yeshua—can pilgrim into the presence of the Most High God (for we
are the temple of God and the Holy Spirit dwells in us) singing these psalms to
Him who sits on the throne (in heaven and in our hearts).
Join with me then O son of Israel and let us exalt the name
of our God together as we pilgrim on His appointed feast days just as He
commanded.
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