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As a Seminary graduate and ordained Pastor I like you grew up in Western Christianity learning about the "Roman Road to Salvation." Sadly after years of scholarly research dealing heavily in areas like original Biblical languages, Biblical culture, Biblical history, chronological tracing of manuscript forgery and manipulation for theological agendas by the Essenes and the Gentile Church, chronicling the innumerable purposefully mistranslations, misquotations, and lifting of Hebrew Scriptures out of context again for "theological agendas," and finally many years of comparative religious studies I realized that this highly touted "Roman Road to Salvation" is nothing more than the replaying of pagan Sun Worship following the "Osiris Pattern" of Egypt.
But not all is bad news for within the Hebrew Tanakh is the true plan for mankind's salvation given by God Himself. Having said that, then let me explain the plan of salvation as seen in the Biblical Festivals as the Bible Yeshua used teaches them.
Christianity gets some of this right; but sadly gets a lot wrong. Let me explain.
God makes His salvation available through faith and this foundational concept is pictured in the physical salvation of Israel from Egypt. Faith is not just a "mental assent" but an alive response to a religious beliefs. Saving faith is not dead but alive and responds. The key is responding in "obedience." This response can be called appropriately "works" for such actions as one's fruit of one's faith accompany such beliefs for if the Israelites had not responded accurately & obediently to their faith in God and failed to apply the blood to their door then they would likewise had died. So we learn that faith that responds in obedience "saves."
What we need to notice is that this "saving faith" was seen at the Passover. Salvation of God delivers the believer from death and this salvation is "imputed" to us yet the reality of its fullness yet awaits us. You might say we have an "earnest" of our salvation today but not the whole ball of wax; at least not yet. Passover serves as the starting place for one's faith in God and His saving Word. It is one's obedient faith to the Words of God that produces this "saving faith" and the Passover was the perfect example for demonstration of one's faith in the God of Israel and in so doing then God's judgment of sin "passes over the believer" due to his obedient faith. Of course for us such obedience [Israel responded in saving faith by applying the blood of a lamb to their doorposts] is seen in obeying the various Commandments of God involved in our unique Covenants with God; both for the Jewish people and the non-Jews as well.
Once we are saved by our faith in God with obedience unto Him at our personal Passover one comes to the next Festival of YHWH where we learn of the purpose of the Festival of Unleavened Bread. The Festival of Unleavened Bread follows "faith in God and his Word" where obedience really comes to the forefront. It is time to get the "leaven" (picture of sin in the Bible) or sin out of our lives. Since sin is the transgression of the Law then getting this "breaking of God's Commandments" out of lives means that we must grow in our understanding of God's Torah and Laws which frame our respective Covenants; both Jewish and non-Jewish [for the Christian the Covenant and Laws of Noah]. This is a sanctification whereby we make ourselves through repentance and obedience to the Word of God acceptable vessels for God's Spirit to inhabit.
Once we grow as worthy vessels for God's spirit to inhabit through repentance and a heightened obedience then God's Spirit comes to such a one in the fulfillment of Pentecost. We have just personally experienced our own Passover where God's judgment passes over us because of our faith in Him and obedience to His word. As our obedience grows then God comes to dwell within us to the degree that we are worthy vessels. As we find in Israel we find in our own lives. These first three Festivals are called the Spring Festivals and they are observed during the first rainy season in Israel.
It helps to understand that Israel had two rainy seasons a year separated by a long dry period. We find the same example in our lives. We all get excited when we come to God, turn from sin, and are filled with His Spirit. But over time the day to day drudgery of life wears us down. We like Israel experience our own dry period as symbolized by a life-time of temptation and drudgery. We are confronted daily of living lives that overcome or lives that fail. Once we are saved, cleansed, and filled with God's Spirit, we are equipped to live out our lives where we must deal with the good and the bad as we encounter them in life. Sometimes life is hard as seen in the dry season following Pentecost; yet we have the Spirit of HaShem to comfort and sustain us throughout the middle and autumn years of our lives.
After the dry season of Israel and our lives we come to the next Festival which is Rosh HaShannah which symbolizes our death at the end of our life. Rosh HaShannah is the resurrection and judgment. It is appointed for man to once die and then the judgment which is also a second part of Rosh HaShannah. After the resurrection at Rosh HaShannah and the judgment and reward for believers as well as non-believers, then one awaits final atonement at Yom Kippur. The only thing lacking is the eternal dwelling of the Spirit of God with mankind at the Festival of Tabernacles. This is the eternal Sabbath where God and man are one. This is only a summary to say the least of what the Biblical Festivals reveal...the Plan of Salvation of God.
And if you noticed, this plan is very understandable to the Jew and non-Jew without trying to "force" Yeshua to fulfill passages that yet remain unfulfilled.
It is these Biblical Festivals, correctly understood as given above, which will further enable the Jew and the non-Jew to become one in expectation of the coming of the Messiah.
As you see the cycle of observance of the Biblical Festivals, called a "moed," in Hebrew, literally means a "rehearsal." What God intends is that all His Children, both Jew and non-Jew, keep and observe these rehearsals in order that they learn God's true plan of salvation and in so doing make their calling and election certain in order that they be the "bride" and not find themselves excluded. God repeated His salvation message to His people year after year in order that no one get it wrong. With Rome's help...we did!
Matt 22:9-14 9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye
shall find, bid to the
marriage. 10 So those servants went out into the
highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and
good: and the wedding was furnished with guests. 11 And when the king came
in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had
not on a wedding garment: 12 And he saith unto him,
Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was
speechless. 13 Then said the king to the servants, Bind
him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness;
there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth. 14 For many are called, but
few are chosen. (KJV)
2 Pet 1:10 10 Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall: (KJV)