It’s been gratifying to hear from many of you about last week’s Rosh Hashanah greetings and the study showing the links of the feasts—past, present, and future—to you and me today. I’d like to continue building on last week’s teaching.

This week we observe the Day of Atonement, also called Yom Kippur. It occurs this year, beginning at sundown on September 27 and lasts until nightfall on September 28. These coming days are sacred times with God because this is His time to meet with His people. What happens during this pivotal moment on God’s timetable can change everything for you, your family, your finances, and your future.

This can be your breakthrough appointment with God and one of the most significant opportunities in your entire life!

The Day of Atonement is significant each year because it closely follows Rosh Hashanah, also called the Feast of Trumpets, and it is the day on God’s holy calendar when He speaks peace to His people. This day requires advanced physical and spiritual preparation. The Lord spoke to Moses that the people should make an offering to the Lord on this day:

“Also the tenth day of this seventh month shall be the Day of Atonement. It shall be a holy convocation for you; you shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire to the Lord.  And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the Day of Atonement, to make atonement for you before the Lord your God. (Leviticus 23:26-28, NKJV)

Of all the seven yearly appointments with God, the Day of Atonement was to be the most solemn and awe-filled. It was a time set aside for national and sanctuary cleansing.

Still relevant today?

As a review, let me go through the three seasons or clusters and the seven feasts:

1. Passover, occurring over eight days during each spring, includes the Feast of Passover (Leviticus 23:5), the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:6), and the Feast of Firstfruits (Leviticus 23:11). The main purpose of this season is to teach the children of Israel how to find true rest and peace in God.
2. The Feast of Weeks marks the summer harvest and is often referred to as Pentecost (Leviticus 23:16-17). It is a single festival, and during this time the children of Israel are instructed in the ways to receive God’s supernatural power.
3. Tabernacles, during twenty-one days each fall, includes the Feast of Trumpets, the Jewish New Year also known as Rosh Hashanah (Leviticus 23:24; Leviticus 25:8-10), the Day of Atonement, the holiest day of the year, also known as Yom Kippur (Leviticus 23:27), and the Feast of Tabernacles (Leviticus 23:34). The purpose is to teach believers how to enter God’s protection and favor.

Each of these feasts were extremely significant for the Hebrews, honoring God for what He had done (and continued to do) in the lives of the children of Israel.

“Why does this matter to me?” you may be asking. “I’m not Jewish. Aren’t these feasts only for the children of Israel, God’s chosen people?”

Jesus atoned for our sins by becoming the ultimate sacrificial Lamb. Thanks to Him, we are free from observing the Law’s many blood sacrifices. That’s why Jesus said, “Think not that I am come to destroy the law, or the prophets: I am not come to destroy, but to fulfill” (Matthew 5:17, KJV).

The feasts of Israel were indeed fulfilled in Christ Jesus, and the Day of Atonement was specifically fulfilled when He died on the cross as the supreme sacrifice for our sins. Because we are redeemed by the blood of Jesus Christ, we don’t have to observe ancient blood sacrifices for our sins to be atoned.

Still, God established the Day of Atonement to be kept forever: “You shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an ever-lasting ordinance” (Exodus 12:14, NKJV).

Today, we must understand the significance of the blessings God pours out on His people during these special feasts and seasons. We also need to understand the instructions God gave us to follow, so we can become who He expects us to be and receive His special blessings on this holy day.

Atonement

The late Derek Prince, my dear friend, wrote in his remarkable book, Atonement: Your Appointment with God:

That is what atonement really means — that God and the sinner are brought into a relationship in which they are one. A more common word today is reconciliation. Through the cross, God and the sinner are reconciled to each other.

It’s true! Christ’s sacrifice ensures that every believer, including you and me, can partake in the unique blessings He imparts on us during these feast days. Of course, there are still two steps for us to take to follow the Israelites’ example about the Day of Atonement:

• Repent of Wrongdoing

The Israelites set aside a time of repentance. This wasn’t simply a time of rehashing every ungodly thing they had done during the previous year. It was a time of cleansing, of letting go of anything that prevented them from honoring and worshiping God with their whole hearts. It included fasting, weeping, mourning, rending hearts, and turning to the Lord (Joel 2:12-13).

You must remove anything that stands between you and the Lord. This is a vital step in the Day of Atonement.

• Give an Offering

Then, God’s people gave a special offering in appreciation for all the Lord had done and in anticipation for all He was going to do in the future (Joel 2:14). It was an act of faith.

These two steps—repenting and giving—resulted in the following promise: “Fear not, O land; be glad and rejoice: for the Lord will do great things” (Joel 2:21).

What exactly are those “great things?” We find that answer in the remainder of Joel 2.

7 Blessings of Yom Kippur (Day of Atonement)

Scripture says the Day of Atonement was one of the three times each year when the Israelites were commanded to bring an offering. After fasting, weeping, mourning, and rending their hearts, then came the time for them to present an offering.

Why three times a year? There are many references to the number three throughout the Scriptures. It’s used 467 times in the Bible, the number of completeness. So it is no accident that God directed the children of Israel to bring an offering three specific times of the year. That was accomplished at the cross.

The atonement offering continues to be critical for believers today. This offering is your divine appointment with God Himself. It is part of your preparation for what is to follow.

As a result of our special offering, Joel 2:18-23 gives seven supernatural blessings connected to the Day of Atonement offering:

1. 1. 1. A Double-Portion Blessing
         “He will cause the rain to come down for you — The former rain, And the latter rain in the first month” (Joel 2:23, NKJV). The former rain prepares the land for seed time, and the latter rain prepares it for harvest. During the first month of the Jewish New Year, both rains come together. This double-portion blessing still happens today for those who present a Day of Atonement offering to the Lord.
      2. Financial Outpouring
         “The threshing floors shall be full of wheat, And the vats shall overflow with new wine and oil” (Joel 2:24, NKJV). If we obey the covenants of God, He promises to open the windows of heaven and pour out a blessing so big that we won’t have room enough to receive it (see Malachi 3:10).
      3. Restoration
         “I will restore to you the years that the locust has eaten” (Joel 2:25, NIV). God promised that He will give back to you whatever the devil has taken away from you.
      4. Miracles
         “You shall eat in plenty and be satisfied, And praise the name of the Lord your God, Who has dealt wondrously with you” (Joel 2:26, NKJV). God promised to provide you with plenty and that He will deal wondrously with you. Imagine an outpouring beyond anything you’ve known before!
      5. God’s Divine Presence
         “I am in the midst of Israel: I am the Lord your God and there is no other” (Joel 2:27, NKJV). Everywhere you go, His presence goes with you.
      6. Blessings upon Your Family
         “I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, Your old men shall dream dreams, Your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days” (Joel 2:28-29, NKJV). God desires for your family to build a great heritage of faith and follow Him all the days of your life (see Psalm 115:14).
      7. Deliverance
         “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Joel 2:32, NKJV). This includes those of us who have been “grafted” as wild olive branches into the tree (see Romans 11:11-24), and this promise of deliverance is available to believers everywhere.

All seven blessings of the Day of Atonement offering are for today’s believers, and you can unlock the door to every blessing God has for you and your loved ones.

This is your appointment with destiny!

Not Empty-handed

God still places significance on His sacred seasons, and as I’ve already mentioned, the Day of Atonement includes a special offering: “They shall not appear before the Lord empty-handed. Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 16:16-17, NKJV). This could be your month of divine breakthrough.

Begin releasing the seven blessings of the atonement in your life by planting your Day of Atonement seed to take the Gospel to the world.

Your gift should be significant, for this season that occurs in the next month can be life-changing for you and your loved ones.

And during this specific Day of Atonement, I believe that God’s blessings on your life will be multiplied significantly. Be a part of this remarkable season by planting your most generous offering!

Plant your seed-offering today. Lay it on the altar, and watch how God uses that sacred offering to release the seven blessings of the atonement on your life. Move now, and things will happen in the coming days that you have never experienced.

What need do you have in your life today? What do you desire for God to do? Make the divine connection between your need and your seed. The secret is in your seed!

Whatever offering God places on your heart, do it now!

My Day of Atonement Prayer for You

The Exodus miracle is one of the most amazing accounts in all of history. The children of Israel were delivered from slavery in Egypt. They were totally healed. Even more, God gave them supernatural guidance. He “went before them by day in a pillar of a cloud, to lead them the way; and by night in a pillar of fire, to give them light” (Exodus 13:21). God allowed His glory to linger as they walked toward the Promised Land.

The seven great feasts of the Lord—Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, Pentecost, Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles—all point back to when God established His covenant with the children of Israel. All, likewise, point forward to Christ the Savior.

From the blood-red trail of sacrifices and each of the feasts, it should be apparent how everything in the Old Covenant points toward the Cross. And after Calvary, the Savior now is looking for us.

What was promised to the great men and women of the past has been fulfilled through Jesus Christ. He paid the price, yet we reap the reward. Oh, how precious is the Lamb of God and the faith we can have in Him.

This is truly a holy season. Your life can be changed. It’s already happening for many who have stepped out in faith with their Day of Atonement offering, and it can happen for you too.

This is my prayer for you today!

With great expectation for you and your future,