THE FEAST DAYS AND —
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DATE OF PUBLICATION: NOVEMBER 2002
Several years ago, I prepared The Truth about
the Feast Days–Part 1-3 [WM–608-610], which
many have found helpful. It contains a rather complete
Bible study on each of the yearly feast days.
But the ceremonial law is, for some, a perplexing
subject; and several requests have been received
for a far more complete Spirit of Prophecy study
on the subject and to what extent we are obligated,
or even permitted, to keep the ceremonial laws today.
The following Inspired statements may help
clarify the matter.
The key points, in the passages which follow,
appear to be these:
• Every Old Testament statute which pointed to
the death of Christ (which therefore was a “shadow
law”) was abolished at the cross.
• Circumcision, although it does not appear to
directly point to the death of Christ, was also eliminated.
• By today keeping the ceremonial statutes
which were “nailed to the cross” (Colossians 2:14-
17 and Ephesians 2:11-15), we belittle Christ’s
death on our behalf.
The Spirit of Prophecy rarely discusses the ceremonial
law as a whole, without mentioning that
its observance was abolished at the cross.
It should be noted that as soon as a type began
to meet its antitype, the type was no longer to be
kept. That is why, today, we do not keep the feast of
trumpets, nor the day of atonement. Both began
being fulfilled in the nineteenth century.
The first set of quotations, below, will be from
the Conflict Series, since they provide our basic understanding
of the subject. After that, quotations
from other Spirit of Prophecy books will be given.
A section on the feast of tabernacles will conclude
the compilation.
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PATRIARCHS AND PROPHETS
“The Passover was to be both commemorative
and typical, not only pointing back to the deliverance
from Egypt, but forward to the greater deliverance
which Christ was to accomplish in freeing
His people from the bondage of sin. The sacrificial
lamb represents ‘the Lamb of God,’ in whom
is our only hope of salvation. Says the
apostle,
‘Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us.’ 1 Corinthians
5:7. It was not enough that the paschal lamb
be slain; its blood must be sprinkled upon the doorposts;
so the merits of Christ’s blood must be applied
to the soul. We must believe, not only that He
died for the world, but that He died for us individually.
We must appropriate to ourselves the virtue of
the atoning sacrifice.”—Patriarchs and
Prophets,
277.
“Yearly feasts were appointed, at which all the
men of the nation were to assemble before the Lord,
bringing to Him their offerings of gratitude and the
first fruits of His bounties. The object of all these
regulations was stated: they proceeded from no exercise
of mere arbitrary sovereignty; all were given
for the good of Israel. The Lord said,
‘Ye shall be
holy men unto Me’—worthy to be acknowledged by
a holy God.”—Patriarchs and Prophets, 311.
“After the completion of the tabernacle He communicated
with Moses from the cloud of glory above
the mercy seat, and gave him full
directions concerning
the system of offerings and the forms of
worship to be maintained in the sanctuary. The ceremonial
law was thus given to Moses, and by him
written in a book. But the law of Ten
Commandments
spoken from Sinai had been written by God
Himself on the tables of stone, and was sacredly
preserved in the ark.
“There are many who try to blend these two
systems, using the texts that speak of the ceremonial
law to prove that the moral law has been abolished;
but this is a perversion of the Scriptures.
The distinction between the two systems is broad
and clear. The ceremonial system was made up
of symbols pointing to Christ, to His sacrifice
and His priesthood. This ritual law, with its sacrifices
and ordinances, was to be performed by
the Hebrews until type met antitype in the death
of Christ, the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin
of the world. Then all the sacrificial offerings were
to cease. It is this law that Christ ‘took . . out of
the way, nailing it to His cross.’ Colossians 2:14.
The
Ceremonial Law PART ONE OF THREE
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“But concerning the law of Ten Commandments
the psalmist declares, ‘Forever, O Lord, Thy word
is settled in heaven.’ Psalm 119:89 . . The law of
God is as immutable as His throne. It will maintain
its claims upon mankind in all ages . . While the
Saviour’s death brought to an end the law of types
and shadows, it did not in the least detract from
the obligation of the moral law. On the contrary,
the very fact that it was necessary for Christ to die
in order to atone for the transgression of that law,
proves it to be immutable.”—Patriarchs and
Prophets,
364-365.
“The ceremonial law was given by Christ. Even
after it was no longer to be observed, Paul presented
it before the Jews in its true
position and
value, showing its place in the plan of redemption
and its relation to the work of Christ; and
the great apostle pronounces this law glorious,
worthy of its divine Originator.”—Patriarchs and
Prophets, 367.
“On the fourteenth day of the month, at even,
the Passover was celebrated, its solemn, impressive
ceremonies commemorating the deliverance
from bondage in Egypt, and pointing forward
to
the sacrifice that should deliver from the bondage
of sin. When the Saviour yielded up His life
on Calvary, the significance of the Passover
ceased, and the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper
was instituted as a memorial of the same event of
which the Passover had been a type.”—Patriarchs
and Prophets, 539.
DESIRE OF AGES
“Thus the law for the presentation of the firstborn
was made particularly significant. While it was
a memorial of the Lord’s wonderful deliverance of
the children of Israel, it prefigured a
greater deliverance,
to be wrought out by the only-begotten
Son of God. As the blood sprinkled on the doorposts
had saved the first-born of Israel, so the blood
of Christ has power to save the world.
“What meaning then was attached to Christ’s
presentation! But the priest did not see through the
veil; he did not read the mystery beyond . . He did
not think that this babe was He whose glory Moses
had asked to see. But One greater than Moses lay
in the priest’s arms; and when he enrolled
the
child’s name, he was enrolling the name of One
who was the foundation of the whole Jewish
economy. That name was to be its death warrant;
for the system of sacrifices and offerings
was waxing old; the type had almost reached its
antitype, the shadow its substance.”—Desire of
Ages, 51-52.
“All the ceremonies of the feast were types of
the work of Christ. The deliverance
of Israel from
Egypt was an object lesson of redemption, which
the Passover was intended to keep in memory. The
slain lamb, the unleavened bread, the sheaf of
first fruits, represented the Saviour.”—Desire of
Ages, 77.
“Then, said the angel, ‘He shall confirm the covenant
with many for one week [seven years].’ For
seven years after the Saviour entered on His ministry,
the gospel was to be preached especially to the
Jews; for three and a half years by Christ Himself;
and afterward by the apostles. ‘In the midst of
the
week He shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation
to cease.’ Dan. 9:27. In the spring of A. D. 31,
Christ the true sacrifice was offered on Calvary. Then
the veil of the temple was rent in twain, showing
that the sacredness and significance of the sacrificial
service had departed. The time had come
for the earthly sacrifice and oblation to cease.”—
Desire of Ages, 233.
“He desired to call attention to the sacrifice that
was to crown His mission to a fallen world. While
the people were assembling at Jerusalem to celebrate
the Passover, He, the antitypical Lamb, by
a voluntary act set Himself apart as an oblation.
It would be needful for His church in all succeeding
ages to make His death for the sins of the world
a subject of deep thought and study. Every fact connected
with it should be verified beyond a doubt. It
was necessary, then, that the eyes of all people
should now be directed to Him; the events which
preceded His great sacrifice must be such as to
call attention to the sacrifice itself.”—Desire of
Ages, 571.
“ ‘The Lord Jesus the same night in which He
was betrayed took bread: and when He had given
thanks, He brake it . . After the same manner also
He took the cup’ . . Christ was
standing at the
point of transition between two economies and
their two great festivals. He, the spotless
Lamb of
God, was about to present Himself as a sin offering,
that He would thus bring to an end the system
of types and ceremonies that for four thousand
years had pointed to His death. As He ate
the Passover with His disciples, He instituted in its
place the service that was to be the memorial of His
great sacrifice. The national festival of the Jews
was to pass away forever. The service
which Christ
established was to be observed by His followers in
all lands and through all ages . . The ordinance of
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the Lord’s Supper was given to commemorate the
great deliverance wrought out as the result of the
death of Christ.”—Desire of Ages,
652-653.
ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
“When the brethren in Judea heard that Peter
had gone to the house of a Gentile and preached to
those assembled, they were surprised and offended
. . Peter laid the whole matter before them. He related
his experience in regard to the vision and
pleaded that it admonished him to observe no
longer the ceremonial distinction of circumcision
and uncircumcision, nor to look upon the
Gentiles as unclean.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 141.
“While the apostles united with the ministers
and lay members at Antioch in an earnest effort to
win many souls to Christ, certain Jewish
believers
from Judea ‘of the sect of the Pharisees’ succeeded
in introducing a question that soon led
to wide-spread controversy in the church and
brought consternation to the believing Gentiles.
With great assurance these Judaizing teachers
asserted that in order to be saved, one must be
circumcised and must keep the entire ceremonial
law.
“Paul and Barnabas met this false doctrine
with promptness and opposed the introduction of
the subject to the Gentiles. On the other hand, many
of the believing Jews of Antioch favored the
position
of the brethren recently come from Judea.
“The Jewish converts generally were not inclined
to move as rapidly as the providence of God opened
the way. From the result of the apostles’ labors
among the Gentiles it was evident that the converts
among the latter people would far exceed the Jewish
converts in number. The Jews feared
that if
the restrictions and ceremonies of their law were
not made obligatory upon the Gentiles as a condition
of church fellowship, the national peculiarities
of the Jews, which had hitherto kept them distinct
from all other people, would finally disappear
from among those who received the gospel message.
“The Jews had always prided themselves upon
their divinely appointed services, and many of those
who had been converted to the faith of Christ still
felt that since God had once clearly outlined the
Hebrew manner of worship, it was improbable that
He would ever authorize a change in any of its specifications.
They insisted that the Jewish laws and
ceremonies should be incorporated into the rites
of the Christian religion. They were slow to discern
that all the sacrificial offerings had but prefigured
the death of the Son of God, in which
type met antitype, and after which the rites and
ceremonies of the Mosaic dispensation were no
longer binding.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 188-189.
“Before his conversion Paul had regarded himself
as blameless ‘touching the righteousness which
is in the law.’ Philippians 3:6. But since his change
of heart he had gained a clear conception of the
mission of the Saviour as the Redeemer of the entire
race, Gentile as well as Jew, and had learned
the difference between a living faith and a dead
formalism. In the light of the gospel the ancient
rites and ceremonies committed to Israel had
gained a new and deeper significance. That which
they shadowed forth had come to pass, and those
who were living under the gospel dispensation
had been freed from their observance. God’s
unchangeable
law of Ten Commandments, however,
Paul still kept in spirit as well as in letter.
“In the church at Antioch the consideration
of the question of circumcision resulted in much
discussion and contention. Finally, the
members
of the church, fearing that a division among them
would be the outcome of continued discussion, decided
to send Paul and Barnabas, with some responsible
men from the church, to Jerusalem to
lay the matter before the apostles and elders. There
they were to meet delegates from the different
churches and those who had come to Jerusalem to
attend the approaching festivals. Meanwhile all
controversy
was to cease until a final decision should
be given in general council. This decision was
then to be universally accepted by the different
churches throughout the country.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 190.
“At Jerusalem the delegates from Antioch met
the brethren of the various churches, who had gathered
for a general meeting, and to them they related
the success that had attended their ministry
among the Gentiles. They then gave a
clear outline
of the confusion that had resulted because
certain converted Pharisees had gone to Antioch
declaring that, in order to be saved, the Gentile
converts must be circumcised and keep the law
of Moses.
“This question was warmly discussed in the assembly.
Intimately connected with the question of
circumcision were several others demanding careful
study. One was the problem as to what attitude
should be taken toward the use of meats offered to
idols. Many of the Gentile converts were living among
ignorant and superstitious people who made frequent
sacrifices and offerings to idols.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 191.
“The Gentiles, and especially the Greeks, were
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extremely licentious, and there was danger that
some, unconverted in heart, would make a profession
of faith without renouncing their evil practices.
The Jewish Christians could not tolerate the immorality
that was not even regarded as criminal by
the heathen. The Jews therefore held it as highly
proper that circumcision and the observance of
the ceremonial law should be enjoined on the
Gentile converts as a test of their sincerity and
devotion. This, they believed, would prevent the
addition to the church of those who, adopting the
faith without true conversion of heart, might afterward
bring reproach upon the cause by immorality
and excess.
“The various points involved in the settlement
of the main question at issue seemed to present
before the council insurmountable difficulties. But
the Holy Spirit had, in reality, already settled this
question, upon the decision of which seemed to
depend the prosperity, if not the very existence,
of the Christian church.”—Acts of the Apostles,
192.
“Once before, Peter had reasoned with his brethren
concerning the conversion of Cornelius and his
friends, and his fellowship with them. As he on that
occasion related how the Holy Spirit fell on the Gentiles
he declared, ‘Forasmuch then as God gave
them the like gift as He did unto us, who believed
on the Lord Jesus Christ; what was I, that
I could
withstand God?’ Acts 11:17. Now, with equal fervor
and force, he said: ‘God, which
knoweth the
hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy
Ghost, even as He did unto us; and put no
difference
between us and them, purifying their hearts
by faith. Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put
a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither
our fathers nor we were able to bear?’ This
yoke was not the law of Ten Commandments, as
some who oppose the binding claims of the law
assert; Peter here referred to the law of ceremonies,
which was made null and void by the crucifixion
of Christ.
“Peter’s address brought the assembly to a point
where they could listen with patience to Paul and
Barnabas, who related their experience in working
for the Gentiles. ‘All the multitude kept silence, and
gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what
miracles and wonders God had wrought among the
Gentiles by them.’
“James also bore his testimony with decision,
declaring that it was God’s purpose to bestow upon
the Gentiles the same privileges and blessings that
had been granted to the Jews.
“The Holy Spirit saw good not to impose the
ceremonial law on the Gentile converts, and the
mind of the apostles regarding this matter was
as the mind of the Spirit of God. James presided
at the council, and his final decision was, ‘Wherefore
my sentence is, that we trouble not them, which
from among the Gentiles are turned to God.’ ”—
Acts of the Apostles, 193-194.
“In this instance James seems to have been chosen
as the one to announce the decision arrived at
by the council. It was his sentence that the ceremonial
law, and especially the ordinance of circumcision,
should not be urged upon the Gentiles,
or even recommended to them. James
sought to impress the minds of his brethren with
the fact that, in turning to God, the Gentiles had
made a great change in their lives and that much
caution should be used not to trouble them with
perplexing and doubtful questions of minor importance,
lest they be discouraged in following
Christ.
“The Gentile converts, however, were to give
up the customs that were inconsistent with the
principles of Christianity. The apostles and
elders
therefore agreed to instruct the Gentiles by letter to
abstain from meats offered to idols, from fornication,
from things strangled, and from blood. They
were to be urged to keep the commandments and
to lead holy lives. They were also
to be assured
that the men who had declared circumcision to
be binding were not authorized to do so by the
apostles.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 195.
“As a result of their deliberations they all saw
that God Himself had answered the question at
issue by bestowing upon the Gentiles the Holy
Ghost; and they realized that it was their part to
follow the guidance of the Spirit.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 196.
“Not all, however, were pleased with the decision;
there was a faction of ambitious and selfconfident
brethren who disagreed with it. These
men assumed to engage in the work on their own
responsibility. They indulged in much murmuring
and faultfinding, proposing new plans.”—Acts
of the Apostles, 196.
“Jerusalem was the metropolis of the Jews, and
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it was there that the greatest exclusiveness and
bigotry were found. The Jewish
Christians living
within sight of the temple naturally allowed their
minds to revert to the peculiar privileges of the Jews
as a nation. When they saw the Christian church
departing from the ceremonies and traditions of
Judaism, and perceived that the peculiar sacredness
with which the Jewish customs had been invested
would soon be lost sight of in the light of the
new faith, many grew indignant with Paul as the
one who had, in a large measure, caused this
change. Even the disciples were not all prepared
to accept willingly the decision of the council.
Some were zealous for the ceremonial law, and
they regarded Paul with disfavor because they
thought that his principles in regard to the obligations
of the Jewish law were lax.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 197.
“The broad and far-reaching decisions of the
general council brought confidence into the ranks
of the Gentile believers, and the cause of God
prospered.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 197.
“When Peter, at a later date, visited Antioch, he
won the confidence of many by his prudent conduct
toward the Gentile converts. For a time he
acted in accordance with the light given from
heaven. He so far overcame his natural prejudice
as to sit at table with the Gentile converts. But when
certain Jews who were zealous for the ceremonial
law, came from Jerusalem, Peter injudiciously
changed his deportment toward the converts from
paganism . . The church was threatened with division.
But Paul, who saw the subverting influence
of the wrong done to the church through the double
part acted by Peter, openly rebuked
him for thus
disguising his true sentiments.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 197-198.
“Peter saw the error into which he had fallen,
and immediately set about repairing the evil that
had been wrought, so far as was in his power. God,
who knows the end from the beginning, permitted
Peter to reveal this weakness of character in
order that the tried apostle might see that
there
was nothing in himself whereof he might boast. Even
the best of men, if left to themselves, will err in
judgment . . this record of the apostle’s weakness
was to remain as a proof of his fallibility . . The
history of this departure from right principles
stands as a solemn warning to men in positions
of trust in the cause of God, that they may not
fail in integrity, but firmly adhere to principle.
The greater the responsibilities placed upon the
human agent, and the larger his opportunities to
dictate and control, the more harm he
is sure to
do if he does not carefully follow the way of the
Lord.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 198-199.
“In his ministry, Paul was often compelled to
stand alone. He was specially taught of God and
dared make no concessions that would involve
principle. At times the burden was heavy, but Paul
stood firm for the right. He realized that
the church
must never be brought under the control of human
power. The traditions and maxims of men
must not take the place of revealed truth. The
advance of the gospel message must not be hindered
by the prejudices and preferences of men,
whatever might be their position in the church.
“Paul had dedicated himself and all his powers
to the service of God. He had received
the truths
of the gospel direct from heaven, and throughout
his ministry he maintained a vital connection with
heavenly agencies. He had been
taught by God
regarding the binding of unnecessary burdens
upon the Gentile Christians; thus when the Judaizing
believers introduced into the Antioch
church the question of circumcision, Paul knew
the mind of the Spirit of God concerning such
teaching and took a firm and unyielding position
which brought to the churches freedom from
Jewish rites and ceremonies.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 199-200.
“These false teachers were mingling Jewish
traditions with the truths of the gospel. Ignoring
the decision of the general council at Jerusalem,
they urged upon the Gentile converts the observance
of the ceremonial law.
“The situation was critical. The evils that
had
been introduced threatened speedily to destroy
the Galatian churches.
“Paul was cut to the heart, and his soul was
stirred by this open apostasy on the part of
those
to whom he had faithfully taught the principles of
the gospel. He immediately wrote to the deluded
believers, exposing the false theories that they had
THE FEAST DAYS AND —
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Ceremonial Law PART TWO
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accepted and with great severity rebuking those who
were departing from the faith.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 383-384.
“From every quarter were coming accounts of
the spread of the new doctrine by which Jews
were released from the observance of the rites of
the ceremonial law and Gentiles
were admitted to
equal privileges with the Jews as children of Abraham.
Paul, in his preaching at Corinth, presented
the same arguments which he urged so forcibly in
his epistles. His emphatic statement, ‘There is
neither
Greek nor Jew, circumcision nor uncircumcision’
(Colossians 3:11), was regarded by his enemies
as daring blasphemy, and they determined
that his voice should be silenced.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 390.
“In the earlier years of the gospel work among
the Gentiles some of the leading brethren at Jerusalem,
clinging to former prejudices and habits of
thought, had not co-operated heartily with Paul and
his associates. In their anxiety to preserve a few
meaningless forms and ceremonies, they had lost
sight of the blessing that would come to them and
to the cause they loved, through an effort to unite
in one all parts of the Lord’s work. Although desirous
of safeguarding the best interests of the Christian
church, they had failed to keep step with the
advancing providences of God, and in their human
wisdom attempted to throw about workers
many unnecessary restrictions. Thus there arose
a group of men who were unacquainted personally
with the changing circumstances and peculiar needs
met by laborers in distant fields, yet who
insisted
that they had the authority to direct their brethren
in these fields to follow certain specified methods
of labor. They felt as if the work of preaching the
gospel should be carried forward in harmony with
their opinions.”—Acts of the
Apostles, 400.
“The liberal contributions lying before them
added weight to the testimony of the apostle concerning
the faithfulness of the new churches established
among the Gentiles. The men who,
while
numbered among those who were in charge of
the work at Jerusalem, had urged that arbitrary
measures of control be adopted, saw Paul’s ministry
in a new light and were convinced that their
own course had been wrong, that they had been
held in bondage by Jewish customs and traditions,
and that the work of the gospel had been
greatly hindered by their failure to recognize
that
the wall of partition between Jew and Gentile had
been broken down by the death of Christ.
“This was the golden opportunity for all the leading
brethren to confess frankly that God had wrought
through Paul, and that at times they had erred in
permitting the reports of his enemies to arouse their
jealousy and prejudice. But instead of uniting in an
effort to do justice to the one who had been injured,
they gave him counsel which showed that they still
cherished a feeling that Paul should be held largely
responsible for the existing prejudice. They did not
stand nobly in his defense, endeavoring to show
the disaffected ones where they were wrong, but
sought to effect a compromise by counseling him
to pursue a course which in their opinion would
remove all cause for misapprehension . . ‘Do therefore
this that we say to thee: We have four men which
have a vow on them; them take, and purify thyself
with them, and be at charges with them, that they
may shave their heads: and all may know that those
things, whereof they were informed concerning
thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also
walkest orderly, and
keepest the law’ . .
“The brethren hoped that Paul, by following the
course suggested, might give a decisive contradiction
to the false reports concerning him. They assured
him that the decision of the former council
concerning the Gentile converts and the ceremonial
law, still held good. But the advice
now given
was not consistent with that decision. The Spirit
of God did not prompt this instruction; it was
the fruit of cowardice. The leaders of the church
in Jerusalem knew that by non-conformity to the
ceremonial law, Christians would bring upon
themselves the hatred of the Jews and expose
themselves to persecution. The Sanhedrin
was
doing its utmost to hinder the progress of the gospel.
Men were chosen by this body to follow up the
apostles, especially Paul, and in every possible way
to oppose their work. Should the believers in Christ
be condemned before the Sanhedrin as breakers of
the law, they would suffer swift and severe punishment
as apostates from the Jewish faith.
“Many of the Jews who had accepted the gospel
still cherished a regard for the ceremonial
law and were only too willing to make unwise
concessions, hoping thus to gain the confidence
of their countrymen, to remove their prejudice,
and to win them to faith in Christ as the world’s
Redeemer. Paul realized that so long as many of the
leading members of the church at Jerusalem should
continue to cherish prejudice against him, they
would work constantly to counteract his influence.
He felt that if by any reasonable concession he could
win them to the truth he would remove a great obstacle
to the success of the gospel in other places.
But he was not authorized of God to concede as
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much as they asked.”—Acts of the Apostles, 403-
405.
“The apostle showed that religion does not
consist in rites and ceremonies, creeds and theories.
If it did, the natural man could understand it
by investigation, as he understands worldly things.
Paul taught that religion is a practical, saving energy,
a principle wholly from God, a personal experience
of God’s renewing power upon the soul.
“He showed how Moses had pointed Israel forward
to Christ as that Prophet whom they were to
hear; how all the prophets had testified of Him as
God’s great remedy for sin, the guiltless One who
was to bear the sins of the guilty. He did not find
fault with their observance of forms and ceremonies,
but showed that while they maintained the
ritual service with great exactness, they were rejecting
Him who was the antitype of all that system.”—
Acts of the Apostles, 451-452.
GREAT CONTROVERSY
“The slaying of the Passover lamb was a
shadow of the death of Christ. Says Paul: ‘Christ
our Passover is sacrificed for us.’ 1 Corinthians 5:7.
The sheaf of first fruits, which at the time of the
Passover was waved before the Lord, was typical of
the resurrection of Christ. Paul says, in speaking of
the resurrection of the Lord and of all His people:
‘Christ the first fruits; afterward they that are
Christ’s at His coming.’ 1 Corinthians 15:23. Like
the wave sheaf, which was the first ripe grain gathered
before the harvest, Christ is the
first fruits of
that immortal harvest of redeemed ones that at the
future resurrection shall be gathered into the garner
of God.
“These types were fulfilled, not only as to the
event, but as to the time. On the fourteenth day of
the first Jewish month, the very day and month on
which for fifteen long centuries the Passover
lamb
had been slain, Christ, having eaten the Passover
with His disciples, instituted that feast which was
to commemorate His own death as ‘the Lamb of
God, which taketh away the sin of the world.’ That
same night He was taken by wicked hands to be
crucified and slain. And as the antitype of
the wave
sheaf our Lord was raised from the dead on the
third day, ‘the first fruits of them that slept,’ a sample
of all the resurrected just, whose ‘vile body’ shall
be changed, and ‘fashioned like unto His glorious
body.’ Verse 20; Philippians 3:21.”—Great Controversy,
399.
OTHER BOOKS
“God’s people, whom He calls His peculiar
treasure, were privileged with a two-fold system
of law; the moral and the ceremonial. The one,
pointing back to creation to keep in remembrance
the living God who made the world, whose claims
are binding upon all men in every dispensation, and
which will exist through all time and eternity. The
other, given because of man’s transgression of
the moral law, the obedience to which consisted
in sacrifices and offerings pointing to the future
redemption. Each is clear and distinct from the
other.
“From the creation the moral law was an essential
part of God’s divine plan, and was as unchangeable
as Himself. The ceremonial law was to answer
a particular purpose in Christ’s plan for the
salvation of the race. The typical system of sacrifices
and offerings was established that through
these services the sinner might discern the great
offering, Christ. But the Jews were so blinded by
pride and sin that but few of them could see farther
than the death of beasts as an atonement for sin;
and when Christ, whom these offerings prefigured,
came, they could not discern Him. The ceremonial
law was glorious; it was the provision made by Jesus
Christ in counsel with His Father, to aid in the salvation
of the race. The whole arrangement of the
typical system was founded on Christ. Adam saw
Christ prefigured in the innocent beast suffering
the penalty of his transgression of Jehovah’s law
(Review May 6, 1875).”—6 Bible Commentary,
1094-1095.
“The types and shadows of the sacrificial service,
with the prophecies, gave the Israelites a
veiled, indistinct view of the mercy and
grace to
be brought to the world by the revelation of Christ.
To Moses was unfolded the significance of the
types and shadows pointing to Christ. He saw to
the end of that which was to be done away when, at
the death of Christ, type met antitype. He saw
that only through Christ can man keep the moral
law. By transgression of this law man brought sin
into the world, and with sin came death. Christ
became the propitiation for man’s sin. He proffered
His perfection of character in the place of man’s
sinfulness. He took upon Himself the curse of disobedience.
The sacrifices and offerings pointed
forward to the sacrifice He was to make. The slain
lamb typified the Lamb that was to take away
the sin of the world.
“It was seeing the object of that which was to
be done away, seeing Christ as revealed in the law,
that illumined the face of Moses. The ministration
of the law, written and engraved in stone, was a
ministration of death. Without Christ, the transgres8
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sor was left under
its curse, with no hope of pardon.
The ministration had of itself no glory, but the
promised Saviour, revealed in the types and shadows
of the ceremonial law, made the moral
law
glorious.”—1 Selected Messages, 237.
“In this ordinance [of the Lord’s
Supper], Christ
discharged His disciples from the cares and burdens
of the ancient Jewish obligations in rites
and ceremonies. These no longer possessed any
virtue; for type was meeting antitype in Himself,
the authority and foundation of all Jewish ordinances
that pointed to Him as the great and only
efficacious offering for the sins of the world.”—5
Bible Commentary, 1139.
“The symbols of the Lord’s house are simple
and plainly understood, and the truths represented
by them are of the deepest significance to us. In
instituting the sacramental service to take the
place of the Passover, Christ left
for His church a
memorial of His great sacrifice for man. ‘This do,’
He said, ‘in remembrance of Me.’ This was the
point
of transition between two economies and their
two great festivals. The one was to close forever;
the other, which He had just established, was to
take its place, and to continue through all time as
the memorial of His death.”—Evangelism,
273-274.
“Paul desires his brethren to see that the great
glory of a sin-pardoning Saviour gave significance
to the entire Jewish economy. He desired them to
see also that when Christ came to the world, and
died as man’s sacrifice, type met antitype.
“After Christ died on the cross as a sin offering
the ceremonial law could have no force. Yet it
was connected with the moral law, and was glorious.
The whole bore the stamp of divinity, and expressed
the holiness, justice, and righteousness of
God. And if the ministration of the dispensation to
be done away was glorious, how much more must
the reality be glorious, when Christ was revealed,
giving His life-giving, sanctifying, Spirit to all who
believe?”—6 Bible Commentary, 1095.
“The passover pointed backward to the deliverance
of the children of Israel, and was also
typical,
pointing forward to Christ, the Lamb of God,
slain for the redemption of fallen man . . The
passover had been
observed to commemorate the
deliverance of the children of Israel from Egypt. It
had been both commemorative and typical. The
type had reached the antitype when Christ, the
Lamb of God without blemish, died upon the
cross.
“He left an ordinance to commemorate the
events of His crucifixion . . Here our Saviour instituted
the Lord’s supper, to be often celebrated,
to keep fresh in the memory of His followers the
solemn scenes of His betrayal and crucifixion for
the sins of the world. He would have His followers
realize their continual dependence upon His blood
for salvation.”—3 Spiritual
Gifts, 225, 227-228.
“There were those in Paul’s day who were constantly
dwelling upon circumcision, and they
could bring plenty of proof from the Bible to show
its obligation on the Jews; but this
teaching was
of no consequence at this time; for Christ had
died upon Calvary’s cross, and circumcision in the
flesh could not be of any further value.
“The typical service and the ceremonies connected
with it were abolished at the cross. The
great antitypical Lamb of God had become an offering
for guilty man, and the shadow ceased in the
substance. Paul was seeking to bring the minds of
men to the great truth for the time; but these who
claimed to be followers of Jesus were wholly absorbed
in teaching the tradition of the Jews, and
the obligation of circumcision.”—6 Bible
Commentary,
1061.
“We can know far more of Christ by following
Him step by step in the work of redemption, seeking
the lost and the perishing, than by journeying
to old Jerusalem. Christ has taken His people into
His church. He has swept away every ceremony
of the ancient type. He has given no liberty to
restore these rites, or to substitute anything that
will recall the old literal sacrifices. The Lord
requires
of His people spiritual sacrifices alone.”—
Review, February 25, 1896.
“The gospel of Christ reflects glory
upon the
Jewish age. It sheds light upon the whole Jewish
economy, and gives significance to the ceremonial
law. The tabernacle, or temple, of God on earth
was a pattern of the original in heaven. All the
ceremonies
of the Jewish law were prophetic, typical
of mysteries in the plan of redemption.
“The rites and ceremonies of the law were
given by Christ Himself, who,
enshrouded in a pillar
of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, was
the leader of the hosts of Israel; and this law should
be treated with great respect, for it is sacred. Even
after it was no longer to be observed, Paul pre Continued
from the preceding tract in this series
WM
1117
sented it before the
Jews in its true position and
value, showing its place in the plan of redemption
and its relation to the work of Christ; and the great
apostle pronounces this law glorious, worthy of its
divine Originator. That which was
to be done away
was glorious, but it was not the law instituted by
God for the government of His family in heaven and
on earth; for as long as the heavens shall remain,
so long shall the law of the Lord endure.”—6 Bible
Commentary, 1095.
“In the place of the national festival which
the Jewish people had observed, He instituted a
memorial service, the ordinance of feet washing
and the sacramental supper, to be observed through
all time by His followers in every country. These
should ever repeat Christ’s act, that all may see that
true service calls for unselfish ministry.”—Evangelism,
275-276.
“There is no discord between the Old Testament
and the New. In the Old Testament we find the
gospel of a coming Saviour; in the New Testament
we have the gospel of a Saviour revealed as
the prophecies had foretold. While the Old
Testament
is constantly pointing forward to the true
offering, the New Testament shows that the Saviour
prefigured by the typical offerings has come.
The dim glory of the Jewish age has been succeeded
by the brighter, clearer glory of the Christian age.”—
6 Bible Commentary, 1095.
“In almost every church there were some members
who were Jews by birth. To these
converts
the Jewish teachers found ready access, and
through them gained a foothold in the churches.
It was impossible, by scriptural arguments, to overthrow
the doctrines taught by Paul; hence they resorted
to the most unscrupulous measures to counteract
his influence and weaken his authority. They
declared that he had not been a disciple of Jesus,
and had received no commission from Him; yet he
had presumed to teach doctrines directly opposed
to those held by Peter, James, and the other apostles.
Thus the emissaries of Judaism succeeded in alienating
many of the Christian converts from their
teacher in the gospel. Having gained this point, they
induced them to return to the observance of the
ceremonial law as essential to salvation. Faith in
Christ, and obedience to the law of ten commandments,
were regarded as of minor importance. Division,
heresy, and sensualism were rapidly gaining
ground among the believers in Galatia.
“Paul’s soul was stirred as he saw the evils that
threatened speedily to destroy these churches. He
immediately wrote to the Galatians, exposing
their false theories, and with great
severity rebuking
those who had departed from the faith.”—6 Bible
Commentary, 1108.
“But there is a law which was abolished, which
Christ ‘took out of the way, nailing it to
His cross.’
Paul calls it the law of commandments contained
in ordinances.’ This ceremonial law, given by God
through Moses, with its sacrifices and ordinances
. . was to be binding upon the Hebrews until type
met antitype in the death of Christ as the Lamb
of God to take away the sin of the world. Then all
the sacrificial offerings and services were to be
abolished. Paul and the other apostles labored to
show this, and resolutely withstood those Judaizing
teachers who declared that Christians should
observe the ceremonial law.”—Signs, September
4, 1884.
“Paul . . describes the visit which
he made to
Jerusalem to secure a settlement of the very questions
which are now agitating the churches of
Galatia, as to whether the Gentiles should submit
to circumcision and keep the ceremonial law.
This was the only instance in which he had deferred
to the judgment of the other apostles as superior to
his own. He had first sought a private interview, in
which he set the matter in all its bearings before
the leading apostles, Peter, James, and John. With
far-seeing wisdom, he concluded that if these men
could be led to take a right position, everything
would be gained. Had he first presented the question
before the whole council, there would have been
a division of sentiment. The strong prejudice already
excited because he had not enforced circumcision
on the Gentiles, would have led many to take
a stand against him. Thus the object of his visit
would have been defeated, and his usefulness greatly
hindered. But the three leading apostles, against
whom no such prejudice existed, having themselves
been won to the true position, brought the matter
THE FEAST DAYS AND —
The
Ceremonial Law PART THREE
OF THREE
10 Waymarks
before the council, and won from all a concurrence
in the decision to leave the Gentiles free from the
obligations of the ceremonial law.”—6 Bible Commentary,
1108.
“The Jews refused to accept Christ as the Messiah,
and they cannot see that their ceremonies
are meaningless, that the sacrifices and offerings
have lost their significance. The veil drawn
by
themselves in stubborn unbelief is still before their
minds. It would be removed if they would accept
Christ, the righteousness of the law.
“Many in the Christian world also have a veil
before their eyes and heart. They do not see to
the end of that which was done away. They do not
see that it was only the ceremonial law which was
abrogated at the death of Christ. They claim that
the moral law was nailed to the cross. Heavy is the
veil that darkens their understanding. The hearts
of many are at war with God. They are not subject
to His law. Only as they shall come into harmony
with the rule of His government can Christ be of
any avail to them. They may talk of Christ as their
Saviour; but He will finally say to them, I know you
not. You have not exercised genuine repentance toward
God for the transgression of His holy law, and
you cannot have genuine faith in Me, for it was My
mission to exalt God’s law . .
“The moral law was never a type or a shadow.
It existed before man’s creation, and will endure
as long as God’s throne remains. God could not
change or alter one precept of His law in order to
save man; for the law is the foundation of His
government. It is unchangeable, unalterable, infinite,
and eternal. In order for man to be saved,
and for the honor of the law to be maintained, it
was necessary for the Son of God to offer Himself
as a sacrifice for sin. He who knew no sin became
sin for us. He died for us on Calvary. His death
shows the wonderful love of God for man, and the
immutability of His law.”—6 Bible
Commentary,
1096-1097.
“This was an important era for the church.
Though the middle wall of partition between Jew
and Gentile had been broken down by the death of
Christ, letting the Gentiles into the full privileges of
the gospel, the veil had not yet been torn away from
the eyes of many of the believing Jews, and they
could not clearly discern to the end of that which
was abolished by the Son of God. The work was
now to be prosecuted with vigor among the Gentiles,
and was to result in strengthening the church
by a great ingathering of souls.”—Story of
Redemption,
303-304.
“The death of Jesus Christ for the redemption
of man lifts the veil and reflects a flood of light back
hundreds of years, upon the whole
institution of
the Jewish system of religion. Without the death
of Christ all this system was meaningless. The
Jews reject Christ, and therefore their whole system
of religion is to them indefinite, unexplainable,
and uncertain. They attach as much importance to
shadowy ceremonies of types which have met
their antitype as they do to the law of the ten commandments,
which was not a shadow, but a reality
as enduring as the throne of Jehovah. The death
of Christ elevates the Jewish system of types and
ordinances, showing that they were of divine appointment,
and for the purpose of keeping faith
alive in the hearts of His people.”—6 Bible Commentary,
1097.
“Paul . . fully comprehended the difference
between a living faith and a dead formalism. Paul
still claimed to be one of the children of Abraham,
and kept the Ten Commandments in letter and in
spirit as faithfully as he had ever done before his
conversion to Christianity. But he knew that the
typical ceremonies [conducted at
the Temple in
Jerusalem] must soon altogether cease, since that
which they had shadowed forth had come to pass,
and the light of the gospel was shedding its glory
upon the Jewish religion, giving a new significance
to its ancient rites.
“The question thus brought under the consideration
of the council seemed to present insurmountable
difficulties, viewed in whatever light. But
the Holy Ghost had, in reality, already settled
this problem, upon the decision of which depended
the prosperity, and even the existence,
of the Christian church. Grace, wisdom,
and sanctified
judgment were given to the apostles to decide
the vexed question.
“Peter reasoned that the Holy Ghost had decided
the matter by descending with equal power
upon the uncircumcised Gentiles and the circumcised
Jews. He recounted his vision, in which God
had presented before him a sheet filled with all manner
of four-footed beasts, and had bidden him kill
and eat; that when he had refused, affirming that
he had never eaten that which was common or unclean,
God had said, ‘What God hath cleansed, that
call not thou common.’
“He said, ‘God, which knoweth the hearts, bare
them witness, giving
them the Holy Ghost, even as
He did unto us; and put no difference between us
and them, purifying their hearts by faith. Now therefore
why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the
neck of the disciples, which neither
our fathers
11 The Feast Days and the Ceremonial Law WM
1117
nor we were able to bear?’
“This yoke was not the law of the Ten Commandments,
as those who oppose the binding
claim of the law assert; but Peter referred to the
law of ceremonies, which was made null and void
by the crucifixion of Christ. This address of
Peter
brought the assembly to a point where they could
listen with reason to Paul and Barnabas, who related
their experience in working among the Gentiles.
“James bore his testimony with decision—that
God designed to bring in the Gentiles to enjoy all
the privileges of the Jews. The Holy Ghost
saw
good not to impose the ceremonial law on the
Gentile converts; and the apostles and elders, after
careful investigation of the subject, saw the matter
in the same light, and their mind was as the
mind of the Spirit of God. James presided at the
council, and his final decision was, ‘Wherefore my
sentence is, that we trouble not them, which from
among the Gentiles are turned to God.’
“It was his sentence that the ceremonial law,
and especially the ordinance of circumcision, be
not in any wise urged upon the Gentiles, or even
recommended to them . . They saw
that God Himself
had decided this question by favoring the
Gentiles
with the Holy Ghost, and it was left for them to
follow the guidance of the Spirit.”—Story of Redemption,
306-309.
“The Jews were so exacting in regard to ceremonial
purity that their regulations were extremely
burdensome. Their minds were occupied with
rules and restrictions and the fear of
outward defilement,
and they did not perceive the stain that
selfishness and malice impart to the soul.
“Jesus does not mention this ceremonial purity
as one of the conditions of entering into His kingdom,
but points out the need of purity of heart.”—
Mount of Blessing, 24.
“They held, and still hold, the mere husks,
the shadows, the figures symbolizing the true. A
figure for the time appointed, that they
might discern
the true, became so perverted by their own
inventions, that their eyes were blinded. They did
not realize that type met antitype in the death of
Jesus Christ. The greater their perversion of figures
and symbols, the more confused their minds
became, so that they could not
see the perfect
fulfillment of the Jewish economy, instituted and
established by Christ, and pointing to Him as
the substance. Meats and drinks and divers ordinances
were multiplied until ceremonial religion
constituted their only worship.
“In His teaching, Christ sought to educate and
train the Jews to see the object of that which was
to be abolished by the true offering of Himself,
the living Sacrifice.”—Fundamentals of
Christian
Education, 398.
“Christ’s death and resurrection completed
His covenant. [See first half of Daniel 9:27.] Before
this time, it was revealed through types and
shadows, which pointed to the great offering to
be made by the world’s Redeemer, offered in
promise for the sins of the world. Anciently believers
were saved by the same Saviour as now, but it
was a God veiled. They saw God’s mercy in figures.
The promise given to Adam and Eve in Eden
was the gospel to a fallen race. The promise was
made that the seed of the woman should bruise
the serpent’s head, and it should bruise His heel.
Christ’s sacrifice is the glorious fulfillment of the
whole Jewish economy. The Sun of Righteousness
has risen. Christ our righteousness is shining in
brightness upon us.”—7 Bible
Commentary, 932.
THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES
There are several interesting facts about
the feast of tabernacles. It was also called the
feast of ingathering, tents, or booths. (For more information,
see 2 Chron 8:13; Ezra 3:4; Zech 14:16,
18-19; Jn 7:2. Also see Ex 23:16; Lev
23:34-36,
39-43; Deut 16:13-15; 31:10-13; Neh 8:1-18.)
• It is the only one of the yearly feasts that, so
far, has been totally unfulfilled. This is because it is
a type which comes after the day of atonement, and
prefigures the Second Advent. It is truly a gathering
for Advent believers.
• We are encouraged to keep something like it
today. We are told that it should be a season of rejoicing.
The emphasis, presented to us, is more on
gathering together to sing and converse together,
rejoice and encourage one another than to listen to
sermonizing.
• Although it can be kept today, we are not commanded
to do so. In addition, we are not told that,
if kept today, it has to occupy a certain number of
days or at a certain period of time. Thus, a yearly
gathering, of some sort, with fellow believers would
suffice. (The original began on the 15th of the seventh
month [Tisri], and lasted seven days; later 8
days.)
It should be noted that we are never told to keep
the typical feast of trumpets or the day of atonement.
That is because we are today living during
the antitype. We are now to be engaged in the
antitypical work of spreading the final message everywhere
while putting away sin and preparing our
lives for the final atonement, when the Judgment
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passes to our names (see Great
Controversy, chapter
28; “The Investigative Judgment”).
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“In the seventh month came the Feast
of Tabernacles,
or of ingathering. This feast
acknowledged
God’s bounty in the products of the orchard, the
olive grove, and the vineyard. It was the crowning
festal gathering of the year . . This feast was
to be
pre-eminently an occasion of rejoicing. It occurred
just after the great Day of Atonement, when
the assurance had been given that their iniquity
should be remembered no more. At peace with
God,
they now came before Him to acknowledge His
goodness and to praise Him for His mercy. The
labors of the harvest
being ended, and the toils of
the new year not yet begun, the people were
free
from care, and could give themselves up to the
sacred, joyous influences of the hour. Though only
the fathers and sons were commanded to appear at
the feasts, yet, so far as possible, all the household
were to attend them, and to their hospitality the servants,
the Levites, the stranger, and the poor were
made welcome.
“Like the Passover, the Feast of Tabernacles was
commemorative. In memory of their pilgrim life
in the wilderness the people were now to leave
their houses and dwell in booths, or arbors,
formed from the green branches ‘of goodly
trees,
branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees,
and willows of the brook.’ Leviticus 23:40, 42, 43.
“The first day was a holy convocation, and to
the seven days of the feast an eighth day was
added [in Neh 8:18], which was
observed in like
manner.
“At these yearly assemblies the hearts of old
and young would be encouraged in the service of
God, while the association of the people from the
different quarters of the land would strengthen
the ties that bound them to God and to one another.
Well would it be for the people of God at
the present time to have a Feast of Tabernacles—
a joyous commemoration of the blessings of God
to them. As the children of Israel celebrated the deliverance
that God had wrought for their fathers, and
His miraculous preservation of them during their
journeyings from Egypt, so should we
gratefully
call to mind the various ways He has devised for
bringing us out from the world, and from the darkness
of error, into the precious light of His grace
and truth.”—Patriarchs and
Prophets, 540-541.
“The Feast of Tabernacles was the closing gathering
of the year. It was God’s design that at this
time the people should reflect on His goodness
and mercy. The whole land had been under His guidance,
receiving His blessing. Day and night His
watchcare had continued .
.
“This feast was not only the harvest thanksgiving,
but the memorial of God’s protecting care
over Israel in the wilderness. In commemoration of
their tent life, the Israelites during the feast dwelt in
booths or tabernacles of green boughs. These were
erected in the streets, in the courts of the temple, or
on the housetops. The hills and valleys surrounding
Jerusalem were also dotted with these leafy dwellings,
and seemed to be alive with people.
“With sacred song and thanksgiving the worshipers
celebrated this occasion. A little before
the feast was the Day of Atonement, when, after
confession of their sins, the people were declared to
be at peace with Heaven. Thus the way was prepared
for the rejoicing of the feast.”—Desire of Ages, 447-
448.
“The people of Israel praised God at the Feast
of Tabernacles, as they called to
mind His mercy
in their deliverance from the bondage
of Egypt and
His tender care for them during their
pilgrim life
in the wilderness. They rejoiced
also in the consciousness
of pardon and acceptance, through the
service of the day of atonement, just ended.
“But when the ransomed of the Lord shall have
been safely gathered into the heavenly Canaan, forever
delivered from the bondage of the curse, under
which ‘the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in
pain together until now’ (Romans 8:22), they will
rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory. Christ’s
great work of atonement for men will then have been
completed, and their sins will have been forever blotted
out.”—Patriarchs and Prophets, 542.
“The time chosen for the dedication [of the rebuilt
temple] was a most favorable one—the seventh
month, when the people from every part of the kingdom
were accustomed to assemble at Jerusalem to
celebrate the Feast of Tabernacles. This feast was
pre-eminently an occasion of rejoicing. The labors
of the harvest being ended and the toils of the
new year not yet begun, the people were
free from
care and could give themselves up to the sacred,
joyous influences of the hour.”—Prophets and
Kings, 37.
Is it possible that, following the death of
Christ, if we today observe any ceremony pointing to the death of Christ,
we crucify Him twice (Hebrews 6:6 refers to
returning to sinful habits: “They crucify . . the Son of God afresh”)?
Moses’ great sin was striking the rock twice (PP 418:1). After the first time (PP 411), he was only to speak to it.