“There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD.”
~ Leviticus 23:3
Hi James and Ellen,
How often does your extended family get together to just have fun? How often does your dad and ma have a friend or friends over to just visit with him, her or them around the table over a meal? How often do guys, gals and kids get together from the different Christ-follower fellowships that are in your area for the purpose of celebrating being Christ-followers? Each summer when your grandpaa was a kid, your grandpaa went with his dad and ma to two family reunions – the Meyer and DeGroot family reunions. Meyer is the maiden name of your grandpaa’s dad’s ma. DeGroot is the last name of your grandpaa’s ma’s dad. A young couple who lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado – which is where your grandmaa and grandpaa are living, called your grandmaa and grandpaa two days ago to ask your grandmaa and grandpaa if they would like to meet them at a restaurant to eat with them. Because your grandpaa had put a pork roast in a crockpot earlier in the day, your grandmaa invited Jim and Amber to eat with your grandmaa and grandpaa where they were living. Jim and Amber arrived at the condominium where your grandmaa and grandpaa were living shortly after six o’clock and stayed until well after ten o’clock. Your grandmaa and grandpaa really enjoyed being able to spend the evening with Jim and Amber – eating, visiting, playing Quiddler, talking about going to Guatemala again together next January and dreaming about a ministry that your grandpaa might do next.
Carnival is a three day celebration that begins in Latin America – and in other place on planet Earth, three days before the seventh Sunday before Easter Sunday. Carnival is a time when guys, gals and kids who are not Christ-followers will dance provocatively in parades, dress in flamboyant costumes and act in very perverse ways. Throwing water filled balloons at other guys, gals and kids begins the raunchiness and bawdiness that takes place during the three days of Carnival. As your grandpaa one year was driving the pickup that your grandmaa and grandpaa owned on a street in Santa Cruz, Bolivia during the first day of Carnival, a kid threw a water filled balloon through the open passenger side window of the pickup – hitting your grandmaa on the side of her face. Your grandpaa – because he was really angry, has to confess that he immediately stopped, got out and dumped about a half a bucket of water over the head of the oldest guy who was standing near where the balloon had been thrown. Your grandmaa was not hurt by the balloon that struck her on the side of her face but . . . a number of guys, gals and kids who attended the Christ-follower fellowships that are in Santa Cruz – that are affiliated with South American Mission, would over Carnival have a four day retreat. Your grandmaa and grandpaa for a couple of years really enjoyed being with a group of fun-loving, God-fearing Christ-follower guys, gals and kids where they went to over Carnival.
Leviticus 23 is God telling His specially chosen guys and gals – the Israelite people group guys and gals, that they were to get together several times each year to celebrate His presence among them and what He had done for them. God told His specially chosen guys and gals the days and weeks when He wanted them to have feasts together. God told His specially chosen guys and gals how he wanted them to celebrate thanking and worshipping Him. God told His specially chosen guys and gals that He wanted them to start each year by recommitting to do what verse 3 says for them to do, “ ‘“There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the LORD.” God then told His specially chosen guys and gals that He wanted them to on Abib 14 – which is about March 30 on the calendar that your dad and ma use, celebrate a Passover Feast to remember the night in Egypt when the death angel – who had been sent by God, passed over the houses of God’s specially chosen guys and gals without killing the firstborn baby boy who was in the house because they had done what God had told Moses to tell them to do – which was to ‘paint’ the doorframes of their houses with lamb’s blood. God told each Israelite people group family unit that He wanted them to kill a lamb, boil the lamb with bitter herbs and eat the lamb with bread that had been made without yeast. On Abib 15 through Abib 21 – which is about April 1 through April 7 on the calendar that your dad and ma use, God told His specially chosen guys and gals that He wanted them to spend their time together in special meetings during which time they were to give special offerings. The only bread that they could eat during this week was bread made without yeast. God told His specially chosen guys and gals that He wanted them on Abib 16 to present a wave offering to Him of a sheaf or bundle of barley – which was the first barley to ripen, and then on Silvan 6 – which is about May 21 on the calendar that your dad and ma use, that He wanted them to use the day for joyful festivities at which time they were to give thanks to Him for blessing their harvests. God told His specially chosen guys and gals that He wanted them to get together three other times during the Jewish year. These three times of getting together were to specifically thank God. Studies today are saying that guys, gals and kids no longer know how to visit with each other and how to make friends. What do you think? Why do you think that God has you kids on planet Earth at this time?
Leviticus 23 (761)