The Daily Word of Righteousness

Four Aspects of the Kingdom of God, #3

The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. (Revelation 8:7)

Aspect One—The Feast of Tabernacles and the Kingdom of God

The seven feasts of the Lord are found in the Twenty-third Chapter of the Book of Leviticus and in other passages of the Old Testament.

The booths of the Feast of Tabernacles speak of the dwelling of God in Christ in us and therefore of the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is the Presence and rule of God in us.

The celebration of Tabernacles includes three observances—the last three of the seven feasts of the Lord:

The blowing of Trumpets (Rosh Hashanah ).

The Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur ).

The feast of Tabernacles (Succot ).

The spiritual fulfillments of each of these three feasts are coming to us now internally. As they are being experienced internally by the Lord's people they will commence in the world in a more external form. The external trumpets are the seven trumpets of the Book of Revelation. As the "green grass" of the adamic nature of the saints is being "burned up" by the Presence of Him whose eyes are like a flame of fire, so the green grass of the physical world will be burned up as the Lord begins to judge the world for its deeds (Revelation 8:7).

The blowing of Trumpets signifies the coming of Christ, the Lord of Armies, to wage war against His enemies and to form His army.

The Day of Atonement (Day of Reconciliation), the sixth of the convocations, is the bringing of our whole personality into the likeness of the will and image of God. The larger expression of the Day of Atonement is the thousand-year Kingdom Age, often referred to as the Millennium.

The feast of Tabernacles, the last and greatest of the celebrations, represents the coming of the Father and the Son through the Spirit to dwell in us for eternity. The larger expression of the feast of Tabernacles is the new heaven and earth reign of Christ.

The Lord Jesus is appearing to us personally now (the physical will come later) to raise us from the dead spiritually and to judge us and cleanse us from our sins. Our life may become chaotic as Jesus deals with our love of pleasure, our trust in the present world system, and our desire for preeminence.

The Lord Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead and then directed those standing by to "loose him, and let him go." The raising and loosing of Lazarus took place on the fifth day, representing the blowing of Trumpets—the fifth feast of the seven feasts of the Lord (Leviticus, Chapter 23).

The tenth chapter of the Book of Joshua informs us that the five (again, the number five ) kings of the Amorites were first shut up in the Cave of Makkedah and later brought forth to judgment. So it is that our sins have been "shut up" by the blood of the Lord Jesus, and now the "kings" of wickedness that dwell in us are being brought forth and slain by the Spirit of God.

To be continued.