The month of Elul

THE MONTH OF ELUL

The Sixth month on the Scriptural calendar is the final month before the Fall Moadim start.  (The last 4 Appointed times (Moadim) are the Fall Appointments that we have with YHVH ~  'Fall 'as in Yisrael's Fall season). This Sixth Month on the Scriptural calendar is also called Elul since Babylonian exile. The word "Elul" (aleph, lamed, vav, lamed), the after-captivity name of this month, forms the well- known acronym “Ani Ldodi Vdodi Li” which means "I am my beloved's and my beloved is mine". (Song of Songs 6:3). Elul normally corresponds on the Gregorian calendar with August/September.

 

Fall Moadim (Appointed times):

Yom Teruah (Feast of Trumpets or Day of the Awakening blast),

Yom HaKippurim, (Day of the coverings also known as Day of Atonement)

Sukkot (the 7 day Festival of Booths or Tabernacles)

And Shemeni Atzereth (the Eighth Day assembly that falls on the eighth day at the end of  the seven days of Sukkot. This Eighth Day Assembly (Shemeni Atzereth) is a one- day Appointment/Festival that speaks so beautifully of the "eighth day" (which at the same time is the First day of a new beginning) that will come after the Millennium (Millennium= the seventh thousandth year which gets portrayed beautifully by Sukkot)

Yom Teruah falls on the first day of the Seventh Scriptural month. (Normally it corresponds with somehwere during Sept or Oct on the gregorian calendar) The Sixth Month (Elul) begins thus 29/30 days before Yom Teruah and 40 days before Yom Kippur. Jewish tradition treats this entire 40-day period as a time of spiritual preparation and renewal leading up to Yom Kippur.
Traditional services throughout the29 or 30 days of this month include blowing the shofar every day in the morning (the Jews don't blow it on Shabbat and also not on the last day of this month, in anticipation for the start of Yom Teruah) as also readings from the Tehillim/Psalms. It is a good tradition and something that we can apply too to our personal prayer lives. (Not a commandment though, so you don't have to do it.) It can be a blessing to read through the entire Book of Tehillim/Psalms during this Sixth month. If you read 4-5 average psalms a day, or 1-2 of the longer ones, you can make it through the entire book.

Bringing ourselves before YHVH

We are living in serious times and need to trust our Father YHVH to help us prepare our hearts to draw closer to Him daily and to ask the Ruach (the Spirit) to search our hearts and show us if there is anything that is not pleasing to the Father. We need to make ourselves ready ("the bride will make herself ready") for the coming of the Messiah Yahshua who will come on the clouds with a future Yom Teruah (the Day of the great awakening blast) and during this time we are more aware of the fact that Yahshua is coming back and we need to be ready.

Interceding for Yisrael

May we also realize the seriousness of being "watchmen on the walls of Yerushalayim" more than ever before.

During the month of Elul there is also an expectancy as we look forward to the last Fall -Appointed Times (Fall as in the Fall of Yisrael) where we are rehearsing the End time scenario from Yom Teruah leading up to Sukkot. (Sukkot speaks of the Millennium reign when Yahashua will tabernacle with us to rule and reign from Yerushalayim) and then the Eighth day assembly (Shemeni Atzereth) which speaks of the new beginning at the end of the Millennial reign of Yahshua. (So Sheminie Atzereth portrays the beginning of the Renewed heaven and earth and the new Yerushalayim that will come down out of heaven and the booth of YHVH and the Lamb that will be with us for eternity. (See especially Rev 21:1-3 and I Cor 15:23-28).

Chag Shavuot-Feast of Weeks

                                                                  SHAVUOT

Compiler: Ina Crowther - Last updated 2011

 

There are three different Hebrew words used in connection with YHVH’s festivals: Moed, Chag, and Miqra. The English translations translated it only as Feast, festival and convocation or meeting.

"MOED", which means appointment or an appointed time, Set (or fixed) time, cycle or year, an assembly.

"CHAG", which means feast, is derived from the Hebrew root word chagag, which means to move in a circle, to march in a set apart procession, dance, celebration , and rejoicing.

"MIQRA", which means “Convocation”, “something called out”, “a meeting” or also a “rehearsal”.

Shavuot/Feast of weeks

It always falls on the 3^rdScriptural month (month of Sivan) 50 days after the Shabbat after Pesach – a remembrance of the giving of the Torah (Shemot/Ex 19:20-20:18) and the outpouring of the Set Apart Spirit. (Acts 2:1–13)

Shemot/Exodus 34:22-24, Vayiqra/Leviticus 23:15–21, Bemidbar/Numbers 28:26-31, Debarim/Deutr 14:22–16:,10,17, Debarim/Deutr 16:9-12, Habakkuk 3:1–19.

To be a set apart day – no servile work; making of food is allowed; to have a set-apart meeting; Vayiqra/Lev23:21

To be a joyfull feast ( Debarim/Deutr 16:10-12 “And you shall perform the Festival of Weeks to יהוה your Elohim, according to the voluntary offering from your hand, which you give as יהוה your Elohim blesses you.

 “And you shall rejoice before יהוה your Elohim, you and your son and your daughter, and your male

Unity within the Messianic movement

Unity in the Messianic Movement.
“Are you joking?” No!
For most of us maintaining unity in our own homes can be a full time occupation. The challenge to establish unity amongst believers may sometimes seem impossible.
Before I attempt to address this issue of unity, let me try and dispel some myths: First of all it is a myth to believe that we must all agree. How boring anyway! There will always be differences because all of us have a limited knowledge and understanding. Secondly many people confuse unity with “uniformity” or “ecumenical” oneness and that can lead to unscriptural compromise. In fact, we see in the prophecies that that will be one of the end time strategies of the enemy and that YHVH has called us to “come out of Babylon”.
There is a destructive kind of division that causes truth to fall in the streets.
Mar 3:25 “… if a house is divided against itself, that house is unable to stand.

In an apparent contradiction Yahshua said: Mat 10:34 “Do not think that I have come to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword,1 Footnote: 1 In Lk. 12:51 the word “division” is used, while “sword” has the same meaning here.
Mat 10:35 for I have come to bring division, a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law –
Mat 10:36 and a man’s enemies are those of his own household.1 Footnote: 1Lk. 12:53, Mic. 7:6.
We need to understand the context in which Yahshua was speaking. Yahshua was warning his talmadim (disciples) that they would often find themselves in an environment that