'I Will Come Again'

 'I Will Come Again' Too few understand the true and wonderful meaning of the first day of the seventh month on the Hebrew calendar. (The date on the Gregorian calendar varies.) On it appears the first autumnal new moon, marking the holy day the Jews call RoshHashanah. This Hebrew phrase, however, obscures the day's true significance, as it simply means "the beginning of the year," and thus, the Jews keep it primarily as a New Year's celebration. The Bible, however, calls it "a memorial of blowing of trumpets" (Leviticus23:24), so we call it simply the "Feastof Trumpets." Scripture explains very little about this particular day. Some of the other holy days have long passages devoted to their significance, but in Leviticus 23:23-25, the instruction on the Feast of Trumpets covers a mere three verses, and little more is written anywhere else (see Numbers 29:1). We can only conclude that God feels that calling it a "memorial of blowing of trumpets" is enough for us to begin to understand. Numbers 10:1-10 provides a slew of details about how the Israelites used trumpets in the wilderness and the Promised Land. They blew trumpets to call the people together and to signal them to advance or halt their journey. The trumpet blastrallied men to war or sounded the alarm of danger facing the people. In addition, God instructs them to blow the trumpets "in the day of your gladness, in your appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your months" (verse 10). At the verse's end, He adds, "They shall be a memorial for you before your God: I am the LORD your God." A memorial is something remembered. What were the Israelites to remember,and how was the blare of trumpets involved? Perhaps the most notable event linking God and the blowing of trumpets occurred at Mount Sinai when "the sound of the trumpet was very loud, so that all the people who were in the camp trembled. . . . Then the LORDcame down upon Mount Sinai" (Exodus19:16, 20). Shortly thereafter, He gave them the Ten Commandments and what has become known as the Old Covenant. These events not only marked God as almighty but also their Lawgiver and Ruler. In a word, He was their Sovereign. We can conclude that the blast of trumpets was meant to be a continual reminder to them that God, their covenanted Ruler, was supreme over everything. He ordered their marches, telling them to go and to stop. He called them to assemble. He sentthem to war. He gave them blessings to bring them joy. He appointed their feasts. He even provided them with a calendar and the know-how to make it work! The sound of the trumpet, whenever they heard it, was to bring to their minds that God orders everything; He is in charge. Generally, then, the Feast of Trumpets is a day to remember that God is sovereign, that He is King. But God's holy days are also forward-looking or anticipatory. From an Old Testament perspective, the Passover looked forward to Christ's redemptive sacrifice, Unleavened Bread foreshadowed the Christian's flight from the bondage of sin and walk toward the Kingdom of God, and Pentecost prefigured God's gift of the Holy Spirit and the founding of the New Testament church. What, then, does the next holy day on the calendar, the Feast of Trumpets, anticipate? We can answer this question with another: What is the next big event in God's Plan—one whose theme revolves around His sovereignty? The apostle Paul writes, "For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel,and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise . . ." (IThessalonians 4:16). Jesus Himself prophesies in Matthew 24:30-31: Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And He will send His angels with a great soundof a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other. In Revelation 11:15, the seventh trumpet proclaims the beginning of the reign of Christ: "Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, 'The kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!'" Among the last things Jesus gave His disciples was an assurance that His imminent death would not be permanent and God's glorious plan would unfold as prophesied: "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you toMyself; that where I am, there you may be also" (John 14:3). After three days and three nights in the heart of the earth, He rose from the grave and ascended to heaven, where He waits for His Father's signal—the blast of the last trumpet (I Corinthians 15:52)—to return in power and glory to resurrect the saints, defeat His enemies, and set up HisKingdom. With this biblical evidence, we can understand the significance of the Feast of Trumpets a little better. Once a year at this time, we remember that God is in complete control, and in a little while, His Son will return to take up power as King of kings and Lord of lords. It sounds like an excellent reason for a celebration! - Richard T. Ritenbaugh