“Adonai said to Moshe, ‘Tell the people of Israel: ‘The designated times of Adonai which you are to proclaim as holy convocations are my designated times.'”-Leviticus 23:1-2
Leviticus 23 begins with the Lord speaking to Moses and commanding him to communicate His Words to the people of Israel.
Although these passages are presented from a priestly perspective, they are still being directed to the WHOLE nation of Israel.
God tells Moses that the people of Israel are to keep His “designated times” HOLY.
Other Bible translations may say “appointed times”.
The Hebrew word for “appointed times” is MO’ED.
The important point to keep in mind are these times are not just FIXED but also HOLY!
Let’s not forget that HOLY simply indicates that something has been set-apart as special.
God’s fixed times are special because they are HOLY.
Those who think that Paul’s writings in the New Testament SEEM (and I strongly emphasize the word “SEEM”) to indicate that God’s appointed times have been done away with and that Paul referred to them negatively as “elemental spirits” and “worthless” have been deceived.
That is a horrible interpretation taken out of context and is the result of anti-Jewish prejudice that has blinded the Church for 1900 years.
It’s one thing to say that the Levitical sacrificial system was transformed from the sacrificing of blood of goats and bulls each day to atone for Israel’s sins to a once-and-for-all sacrifice of Yeshua’s blood for atonement.
It’s quite another thing to say that while God established these fixed times in Holy Scripture, declared them good, mandatory and PERMANENT, that once Yeshua came, God did an about face and not only did away with the Biblical Feasts but declared them as worthless.
This is the precise mistaken theology consistently promoted in practically all of the gentile churches that usually couple this teaching with some ridiculous version of replacement theology or the idea that “Jesus was never for Israel”.
There is only ONE REASON why Paul’s writings have been so misunderstood and mistranslated.
THAT REASON IS WILLFUL IGNORANCE OF TORAH!
These appointed times WERE NOT overturned by God once His Son came into the world.
Consider this.
Practically every story we have of Yeshua going up to Jerusalem was for the purpose of observing one or another of these Biblical Feasts!
Are we to really think that Yeshua was observing these feasts while at the same time they were deemed worthless and evil by the Father who established them?
Is Yeshua telling us, His future disciples, that we are to do as He said and NOT as He did?
HOGWASH!
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