Feast of the Tabernacles: Christ, Latter Day Light and Living Water!

Feast of the Tabernacles Initiated by the Lord Leviticus 23:34

Many believe that passover is the most important of the Jewish feasts but most Jews would

Feast of the Tabernacles

consider the Feast of the Tabernacles, to be the greatest and most joyous. This Feast,ls also known as the Feast of Booths or the Sukkot.  A Sukkot is a plural form of the word Sukkah which means a little three sided hut made with tree bows. I believe that when Peter suggested to erect a tabernacles to Moses and Elias and the Savior on the mount of transfiguration he meant lets build Sukkah.(Mark 9:5).The Feast of Tabernacles was, and still is an annual Jewish feast held six months after the Feast of the Passover in the fall. It lasts eight days, beginning and ending on the Sabbath, and commemorates the Lord’s blessings to the children of Israel during their travels in the wilderness. It also celebrates the year’s harvest and marks the end of the harvest season. It includes good food and thanksgiving.

Family Sharing a Meal in a Sukkah

The Old testament student manual (for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints) explains; “at the Feast of Tabernacles more sacrifices of bullocks, rams, lambs, and goats were offered by the priests for the nation as a whole than at all the other Israelite feasts combined. The fact that it celebrated the completion of the fall harvest symbolizes the gospel reality that it is the mission of the house of Israel to gather all nations to Jehovah.”

Today The Feast of Tabernacles is still celebrated by many Jews, food is prepared inside but is eaten in for eight days in Sukkot, sometimes people sleep in huts as well, especially little children look forward to this joyous event. The feast of the Tabernacles in Jesus’s Day was a very important celebration, Jesus Christ our Savior, more than likely, would have, as a child, traveled traveled to Jerusalem with his family for the celebration of the Sukkot each year.  

During the Feast of Tabernacles anciently the temple in Jerusalem was illuminated by the flames from four enormous candelabra! The lights from the huge Menorah would have been seen throughout the entire city, the temple would shine with light. In the Women’s Courts huge lamps were also erected to illuminate the Festival. Young priests-in-training were given the task of filling huge lamps by climbing up to them on great ladders while carrying jugs of oil each day of the celebration, Jewish Priests would read and discuss scriptures about living water and living water would be poured in a basin at the base of the temple altar daily. The words of Zechariah 14:8 would be read, words that we associate with the last days... And it shall be in that day, that living waters shall go out from Jerusalem…"

The Pool of Siloam at the Foot of Mount Moriah  - not fully excavated

On the seventh and last day of the ceremony conducted (as celebrated in Jerusalem, on the American contenant it is celebrated for 8 days.)a procession lead by a priest who holds an empty flask or cistern walks down to a pool which lies on the foothills of Mount Moriah, below in the City of David, to a pool called Siloam. This is the place where them miracle of the Blind man took place Jesus asked the blind man to wash the mud from his eyes in the Pool of Siloam (John 9)

The Al -Aqsa Mosque (gray dome) and Dome of the Rock (Gold Dome)
(excavations of Solomons Temple In foreground) 

A priest would have taken this stairway down to the pool of Siloam, scooped up into a flask, living water, from the pool and carry it back to the temple. This entire ritual in Jesus’s Day was an elaborate and celebratory one with much music and song and dance and the waving of palm branches. (Jews wave the four species, palm, myrtle, citron and willow - see photo) I don't know if this was the case in Jesus's day.

Anciently, at the end of the song phrases of prayer call for God’s blessing, was added it was the word Hoshana! which ment (“Please save”, “save us” or “save now!”). For this reason, the last day came to be known to the Jews as the Hoshana Rabba, meaning the Day of the Great ‘O Save’. The Old Testament Student manual explains - This prayer and song is closely akin to what we do in giving the Hosanna Shout today. (See Old Testament Student Manual Feast of Tabernacles)Priests in the day of Jesus may have dance as David of old danced before the ark (2 Samuel 6:16). As Latter Day Saints, we celebrate with thanksgiving the plan of the Father carried out by His Son Jesus Christ which is going forth to the entire world! This saving work is still happening we claim that the works of vicarious ordinances, like baptism of the dead, that take place in holy temples, are the literal fulfillment of prophecy and are something happening that Jesus approved of .(1 Cor 15:29) Christ truly is the living water he proclaimed himself to be and that water has not stopped flowing.

We see the profound impact as we relate to the settings of the Feast of the Tabernacles which surrounded Christ’s declarations of power. The Jews, as a people, were calling on Him and He answered, which strongly aggravated many Jews of the Sanhedrin. Though many believed. The Feast of the Tabrinacles was the setting whereby the Lord made these declarations:

John 8:12 ... I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life... and .John 7:37:38 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. The scriptures explain to us that as he spake these words many believed on him. (John 8: 30) John 7:40 Many of the people therefore, when they heard this saying, said, of a truth this is the Prophet. Meaning the Prophet who they were looking for in the celebration they were attending!

Then Jesus said if ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:35 -36) Then he told everyone that he himself is the TRUTH  John 8: 36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

We too express thanksgiving for the plan of the Father carried out by His Son Jesus Christ which is going forth to the entire world! This saving work is happening we claim that the works of ordinances, like baptism of the dead, that take place in holy temples are the literal fulfillment of prophecy.(1 Cor 15:29) Christ truly is the living water he proclaimed himself to be and that water has not stopped flowing. (Revelations 17:20)  

Seek Ye First The Kingdom of God

Matthew 5-7

This week Chris and I talked about the Sermon on the Mount - (this was the second lesson on the Sermon in Sunday School, last week it was the Beatitudes.) My husband and I referenced an awesome DVD called “Courageous”.  It is about a group of fathers and law enforcement officers who, with the aid of their beliefs, make strong commitments to be better fathers and stronger men.  It is a fictional movie but it is based on real truths. Here is a synopsis of a side story of the movie (Don't my synopsis of Javier is not a movie spoiler!)

(Movie Trailer From You Tube if your interested )

After making the commitment one man, Javier Martinez, finds himself faced with a real dilemma.  

“I would like to give you this promotion and you will be working in receiving in the warehouse.  You can have the job on one condition,  There are going to be 17 crates come in and but I want you to sign off that there were only 16.  The other crate is going somewhere else. I can count on you right?, You are on my team ok?”

Javier is torn, how can he lie?  He has made strong commitments to God to stand up for truth.  God has just blessed him with a good, permanent Job.  He has to determine what to do.  The boss gives him until 10:00am the next day to decide.  

Javier goes home and tells his wife Carmen of his dilemma,

“What can I do?” “He made it clear that I had to be a Team Player.” Carmen reply's “you finally have a job, you don’t want to lose it, maybe it is ok this one time.”

But, Javier decides to tell the boss that he can’t lie and say there are 16 crates when there are actually 17.  He knows that and he will have to turn down the promotion, he also realizes that he may also lose his job altogether.  He tells Carmen “I will call after the meeting at 10  if there is a problem.”

Before 10 the next day Carmen says another prayer.  Carmen looks at the clock, it is 10:10 and just then the phone rings.  She doesn't want to answer it, but finally, hesitantly she picks up the phone and after Javier says hello she immediately begins to console him. “It will be ok, she says.  You can find another job, we will be alright, you have done the best you could.” But, Javier, she finds, after she stops to listen to what he is saying, is explaining that it was all a test.   

The boss had asked 6 other men the same question, all had said they would sign off on the 16 crates, and let the 17th crate slide.  Only Javier had the integrity to be true. He received the manager's position.  His family was blessed for his being pure in his actions and his deeds.  

How can we tell if someone is a true disciple of Jesus Christ?  

Chris and I Showed 2 Bottles of Water. (one he got from pure well water and one that he got from the toilet!)

We Explained: One of these bottles of water contains pure water from our well, the other water comes from the toilet bowl. Which bottle contains the pure well water? How do we know, how can we tell?  We are the only one who knows, besides our Heavenly Father, where we got the water from.  

Chris tells me that his parents told him that one time, when he was a toddler, his mother asked him to go and get her a cup of water.  She didn't tell him where to get it from.  Yes, he was young, not tall enough to reach the sink, and so, guess where he got it from?  He didn't know better.  We do, our motives behind our actions can be pure and true.  I don’t know how she determined where he got the water from, I hate to imagine - but we are lucky, most of the time it is not necessary for us to judge each others water bottle, but when it is and if it is, we are told how we can judge.

Matthew 7:20  Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them. One of the only ways to judge a true disciple is by their “fruits”  Sometimes it is not necessary to judge but if it is, and when it is, and if we are called upon to be a judge, Jesus tells us this righteous way.

The real test of a true disciple is the heart of that disciple. This lesson was all about the purity of the heart.  True disciples do the right things for the right reasons.

Matthew 6:19-21 (Where treasure is there will heart be also.)

How can we determine what it is we treasure? (One way is to evaluate the amount of time, money, and thought we devote to something.) Think about the things you treasure and silently consider what these treasures say about where your heart is.

We, as Javier, need to be assured that God will take care of us. How can we have peace, when things are tough?  

Matthew 6:28 -34 At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus told the parable of the wise man and the foolish man (Matthew 7:24–27). What is the “rock” on which we should build?

The Day before our lesson Chris and I, had to go and get ink for the printer and get the computer repaired.  It was a real dilemma, it was going to cost more than we had, we like Javier were on our last bits of change for the week.  We knew that today we would need to pay our tithing. Chris and I decided, after a bit of tough time and controversy that we would do the budget (we detest the budget). But, we didn't question our tithing we always pay our tithing, Chris had already written one tithing check for last week and we knew that we would need to turn it in plus the check for this week. We took the computer to Office Depot where they would do a free computer check.  It ended up being something pretty minor and didn't cost us anything. It works, it may cost something later but it works for now. Then, we went to pick up the ink from the refill store.  That man said, “I really didn't do much, it seemed that your ink was almost full, I did top it off, It wouldn't be fair for me to charge you, I simply made sure that is wasn't blocked.”  This is an example of how the Lord blesses us. I know that God takes care of us.  This has happened so many times in our life.  We have no reason to question it.  

•Jesus promised that if we “seek … first the kingdom of God,” we will be given all other things that we need 

Matthew 7; 8-11  For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?  Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?

The Book of Mormon, another testament of Christ, repeats many of the Sermon on the Mount words to the Nephites in the Americas Long ago. The Saviors words to them, also confirms that we need to ask God for that which we need...

3 Nephi 18:19-20 Therefore ye must always pray unto the Father in my name; And whatsoever ye shall ask the Father in my name, which is right, believing that ye shall receive, behold it shall be given unto you.

 

I know that God takes care of us, and that as we live as his loving disciples with true integrity and purity in our thoughts and in our motives our lives will be blessed. We are not perfect, we are asked to be perfect (Matt 5:48) but we can only achieve this with the help of our Savior,

We know that we can not receive perfection without him.

We Sang “ The wise man and the foolish man, as our lesson suggested” It is a childs primary song but it teaches an awsome lesson and since the lesson suggested it I wanted to sing it

(We did it - Well, most did, some of the class were kind of party poop-ers , and looked like "Why in the world should we sing that!" No worries, but a BIG thanks to those who sang!)

Remember the rains came down and the floods came up on both the houses!  But, the house on the rock stood still.  Psalms 46:10  

We encourage you to read the Sermon on the Mount, and apply it to your life!

What a wonderful world it would be if we all lived according to these words!  How blessed we are to have these words from our Savior right literally in the palms of our hands.

 

Born Again~

My husband Chris and I taught the Sunday school class this week.  We have been studying the story of Nicodemus from the bible.  We played the new song by Carrie Underwood because our lessons objective was to help the class understand that to live the gospel we must be "Born Again" and continue to follow Jesus Christ.  We are not the only Sunday School Teachers out here, we have about Seven teachers I believe, we alternate weeks, as members called to teach we take turns. It is our responsibility as teachers to get across the lesson objective and cover the material that we feel is inspired for members in our class to understand.  Lessons contain a wealth of information in each lesson.  So I set about studying the lesson material and praying what to teach.  It is a good way to learn and  the class is encouraged to study as well, so that we can each be "edified together"- Corinthians 14:26

It is amazing how things come to you as you pray for the class to be able to know and understand what Christ would have the class know. To know and understand what point to which "Jesus" would have us speak.  

My husband, Chris, came across an awesome song by Carrie Underwood, our son Christopher had told him that he had looked up the lyrics and that it was a very clear interpretation about truth of baptism which can apply all Christians We felt it appropriate to play the song in class, I felt that it would help convey the spirit of faith taken by all Christians to go to any minister and be baptized of the water. It takes so much faith for new members of Jesus Christs Church on the Earth to choose to take the hand of a Missionary Elder, called of proper authority come from God, and to go down into the waters of baptism, believing that as they do so with a true and honest, and humble heart that a change will begin in their lives. My daughter Jessica, teaching people in Mexico has been such a help to us and we pray people will listen to her message follow the teachings of Jesus Christ and be Baptized new members of his true church on the earth.

Here is the Carrie Underwood Message... we only played the song, and had the class listen for the message that they understood of truth in it.

We also,in  our personal studying referenced the Hawaiian Pidgin Bible.  It is a King James translation of the bible that helps the people of Hawaii, speaking the " Hawaiian Pidgin English" language to come to a clearer understanding of the  Bible.  Because it is such a simple, straight forward language our family has had fun looking to it for both interpretations and "humor" in Jesus's words. The story of Nicodemus is very interesting in the Hawaiian Pidjen Bible. We referenced only a few lines in class.

Here is the story if you would like to see the humor. http://www.pidginbible.org/Concindex.html

As teachers we are encouraged to follow lesson material in the Manuel, but we also are told to follow the spirit in choosing what we say and what we feel the spirit dictates. In sunday school we decided to use only a a line of that bible to our lesson taught from the Manuel.

"You a teacher come from the jews and you still don't know this stuff...