BREAD IN THE BASKETS
The true testimony of the church and its practice of meeting on Sunday is encompassed in the foretelling fact that it is a Pentecost work. Of all the feasts of Yahweh - Passover, followed by Pentecost, and then Tabernacles (as well as Dedication and Purim) - Pentecost is the only feast associated with a specific day of the week. Passover occurs on the dates of Nisan 14 through 21. Likewise Tabernacles occurs on specific dates in the month of Tishri - 15 through 22 - irrelevant of the day of the week. As an example of this "date" specific over "day" specific phenomenon, we'll take a look at Tabernacles. Tabernacles always begins on the fifteenth of Tishri. In one given year, that date might fall on a Monday. In another year, the same date could fall on a Friday. Thus, these two sets of feasts - Passover and Tabernacles (as well as Dedication and Purim) - are not "day" specific, but rather "date" specific. Pentecost, on the other hand, is the only feast that is "day" specific, and that day is always - Sunday. But let us see how this is determined. We will read from Yahweh's instruction concerning Passover in Leviticus 23:15-17.
"You shall also count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf of the wave offering; there shall be seven complete sabbaths. You shall count fifty days to the day after the seventh sabbath; then you shall present a new grain offering to Yahweh. You shall bring in from your dwelling places two loaves of bread for a wave offering, made of two-tenths of an ephah; they shall be of a fine flour, baked with leaven as first fruits to Yahweh."
You see then that after Passover (which always occurs on the fourteenth of Nisan), one progresses to the next sabbath and counts fifty days (Pentecost means fifty), and the fiftieth day is the day of Pentecost. It is a sabbath sabbaths (seven times seven, or forty-nine days) plus one more day, which always places Pentecost on the day after the sabbath, or Sunday. Thus we see that Pentecost is uniquely "day" specific, and not "date" specific, as are the other feasts.
The church is clearly a Pentecost work. It was birthed on Pentecost, and it is dependent upon Pentecost revivals (outpourings of the Holy Spirit) to refresh and often turn it from lethargy, ineffectiveness, and corruption. Revivals throughout the 2,000 year history of the church have often brought new life and direction. Thus the church began and continues as a Pentecost work. Another way of saying this is that we are in the Pentecost period of the work of Yahweh. This is clearly why the church meets on Sunday. Though there may be many historical reasonings as to why the church meets on Sunday, the higher reason is Yahweh's design that the church is a Pentecost work, a Sunday work, during this Pentecost period of God's divine progressing order. So, whatever reason may be brought up as to why men worship on Sunday, truly, it comes down to being God's sovereign design, order, and testimony for the church. The church is Yahweh's Sunday-meeting Pentecost expression and work.
But now that we see this, let us look closer at this decidedly Pentecost expression of God's kingdom. Reread Leviticus 23:15-17 and note that Pentecost has another unique distinction - it is the only feast in which the offering of fine flour is "baked with leaven." Pentecost is specifically and uniquely the feast of leavened bread. What does leaven represent in the Scriptures?
We know from the teachings of Yahshua that leaven represents false teachings and sin. Yahshua warned His disciples - "beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees" (Matthew 16:6), and "Beware of the ... leaven of Herod" (Mark 8:15). Following His explanation of this warning, the disciples "understood that He did not say to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teachings of the Pharisees and Sadducees" (Matthew 16:12). The leaven Yahshua warned of was the false teachings of men.
The church, identified specifically and clearly with Pentecost, is unmistakably a leavened period or a leavened work. This is obvious when one takes an honest look at the church. It has historically been and is today - leavened! It is leavened with all sorts of false man and Satan inspired teachings and ways. 22,000 denominations and sects cannot all be right. Yahshua declared concerning this church kingdom period - "To what shall I compare the kingdom of God? It is like leaven, which a woman took and hid in three pecks of meal, until it was all leavened" (Luke 13:20-21). The three-part or three 1,000 year church kingdom is clearly and unquestionably the three peck Pentecost leavened kingdom; and it is "all leavened" - even today.
But even while the church has a legal tenure of 3,000 years, it is these first 2,000 years of leavened tenure that are the Pentecost wave offerings unto Yahweh. You will notice that specifically "two" loaves of leavened bread were to be waved before Yahweh. The church's 2,000 years of leavened existence are the two loaves of leavened bread that are offered to Yahweh as a Pentecost wave offering. And most significantly, these two loaves of leavened bread were not offerings that could ascend to heaven as a sweet aroma burnt offering; but rather, they had to remain in the hands of the priest whose feet remained on this earth, and the two loaves of bread were only waved before Yahweh. Yahweh's laws strictly forbade any leavened bread from ascending to Him in a burnt offering (Leviticus 2:11). Equally, the church's two-loaf or 2,000 year leavened bread offering cannot and will not ascend to Yahweh.
What specifically does this mean for the two-loaf or 2,000 year period of the church? This leavened period cannot and will not enter into resurrection (the burnt offering will not ascend to Yahweh). More specifically, Christians in this two-loaf 2,000 year period will not ascend to heaven and return to reign with Yahshua for the 1,000 years in His Millennial reign. Their three-part tenure affords them yet another remaining 1,000 years service on this earth. And by the laws of Yahweh, they cannot ascend to heaven and receive their resurrected bodies. This would be strictly forbidden by His laws. Rather, the leavened kingdom of God that Yahshua foretold must remain on this earth in the hands of the priest whose feet are planted on this earth. Christianity is leavened Pentecost bread, which can only be waved before Yahweh and must remain in the hands of the earth-planted priest. This 2,000 year period of the church, as proclaimed in Zechariah 13:7-9, is cut off from the kingdom by death, and will be refined by fire in the third part of the kingdom, or third 1,000 year period, which is specifically the Millennial reign. The church will remain in their earthly bodies to be refined by fire. In order to stop the action of the leaven in the two loaves or 2,000 years of leavened bread, there is only one solution - bake the bread! Pentecost Christianity's 2,000 years or two loaves of bread will be baked in their third period during Yahshua's Millennial reign.
While Christianity most decidedly fails, Yahweh will however have His purified "two sons of fresh oil" Remnant. This two-son or two-part Remnant will be established and purified by the work of the former and latter rains of the Holy Spirit, and will reign with Yahshua for 1,000 years. They will be the "blessed and holy" ones who are in the first resurrection spoken of in Revelation 20:5-6, not all of Christianity as many falsely expect.
Also here, do not confuse the two part Remnant with the two loaves of leavened Pentecost bread. Although these are both associated with the number "two," the reason the Remnant is two parts is because of a breach created by two-loaf Christianity. This breach will be repaired and the two Remnant parts will be united into one.
We must be brief on these next points, but they are very important to note. We will now quickly look at the yearly harvests in relation to the different feasts, and consider their great prophetic significance. Since these important points are presented so very briefly, you will have to read this carefully and slowly.
We discover that each of the agricultural harvests - barley, wheat, and grapes - coincide with each feast - Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. And most importantly, each harvest reveals or represents separate and distinct resurrections among mankind. For now we will briefly examine the first two resurrections.
The first resurrection corresponds with the first natural agricultural harvest, which was the earlier barley harvest that coincided precisely with Passover. This first barley harvest Passover resurrection will be the resurrection of the Remnant. The next harvest was the wheat harvest, which coincided with Pentecost, and is a type or foreshadowing picture of the second resurrection. This wheat harvest Pentecost resurrection will be the resurrection of Christians. Both feasts then were specific harvest feasts - Passover's barley harvest, and Pentecost's wheat harvest. At Passover, absolutely no leaven was allowed during the feast or in the offerings. At Pentecost, leavened bread was to be waved before Yahweh.
By the cleansing power of the soon coming latter rain, the leaven will be removed from the house of the second Remnant, qualifying them to be a part of the first resurrection or the preceding or first coming Passover barley harvest. The unleavened bread of Passover was fine flour mixed with oil. Likewise, the barley flour Remnant will be mixed with the anointing oil of the Holy Spirit (made available for the "two sons of fresh oil") so as to become the Passover offering to Yahweh.
Thus we see in these two feasts the first two resurrections unto Yahweh. The first resurrection will be the Passover barley resurrection in which the "two sons of fresh oil," or the two-part Remnant, will ascend to Yahweh. The second resurrection will be the Pentecost wheat resurrection following the third-part or third 1,000 year period in which the leavened bread of Christianity is baked by fire. Christians will enter into resurrection, but not when they think. Christianity's resurrection will be the second resurrection, the Pentecost resurrection, preceded by the Passover resurrection. These are critical legal distinctions that must be realized in order to understand all that Yahweh will do to fulfill the feasts and establish His kingdom upon this earth.
Let us now consider further this matter of leaven, and Yahweh's testimony concerning specifically where that leaven is found.
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