Rosh Hashanah, which translates to “Head of the Year” in Hebrew, is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the Jewish High Holy Days, which occur in the early autumn of the Northern Hemisphere. Rosh Hashanah is a time of personal introspection and repentance. Traditionally, it’s believed that God inscribes each person’s fate for the coming year into the Book of Life, which is sealed on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, which occurs ten days later.
Spiritual Significance to Christians:
Rosh Hashanah, being a biblical feast (known as the Feast of Trumpets in the Bible), holds significance in several ways:
Biblical Roots: Many Christians believe in understanding the Jewish roots of their faith since Jesus (Yeshua) was a Jew, and understanding the context of His teachings and the cultural festivals of His time can provide deeper insights into Christianity.
Prophetic Significance: Some Christian theologians and believers see the Jewish feasts as prophetic foreshadows of Christ’s ministry and His second coming. For instance, the “Feast of Trumpets” (which is Rosh Hashanah) is often associated with the future resurrection of the dead and the return of Christ, especially given its association with the blowing of the shofar (ram’s horn).
Unity and Solidarity: Observing or recognizing Rosh Hashanah can be a way for Christians to stand in solidarity with the Jewish community, acknowledging the shared heritage and interconnected roots of the two religions.
Just as it is for Jews, the themes of introspection, reflection, and turning back (or repentance) resonate with Christian teachings. While not traditionally observed in Christianity, some Christians might find spiritual value in using this time for personal reflection, mirroring the introspection that occurs during Rosh Hashanah.
This is going to be the year of an open door for many of you. Not the many doors, but the main door God has prepared for you. Just as he opened a door for the church in Philadelphia and said, ‘See I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut’ Revelation 3:8, God is opening the door that you need open that will lead to His greater works unfolding in His divine plan in your life.
2024 is going to be a year of Divine Alignment. You might have felt the reducing, He has been reducing, pressing, squeezing, and shaping you in His hands. 2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come.
Some of you have never met God as the potter who molds and shapes and takes the areas of your life that are hard and full of sin and works them into a new form that is something that is beyond your imagination. Or He takes the best areas of you and adds shape that He can pour through you His grace of prosperity, blessing, and even transformation for nations. The Potter is shaping some people in our generation who are so rare, and their form is so suited for every problem that arises in culture, but it looks the opposite to those who aren’t potters, those who are used to what was formed before, those who want to be like vessels in the past.
The path has been narrow and challenging, its like walking a tight rope to be obedient to God in this season. So much that is happening around us is confusing and so to listen takes so much extra effort. To be led by God is so much more of a focus. But this is a time like Matthew 7:13-14 where we have had to take a narrow road and not be on the wide gate that leads to destruction, anxiety, confusion, financial ruin.
There is a purpose in the pressure!
There is an alignment in the affliction!
Can you imagine how going through the pains and sufferings that the whole world is experiencing without Jesus right now? He is such a guiding light and comfort. I don’t have good news about 2024 externally its going to be one of the hardest years in modern history with natural disasters amping up, political turmoil coming to a head before the elections, corruption being exposed with people that culture has loved, and a demonic confusion assaulting truth everywhere, but for those who are walking with Jesus, our light is rising upon us like it says in Isaiah.
I had a dream where the bride was like Peter trying to walk on the water and was about to fall in, but then saw Jesus and she was able to walk although it was a tightrope, where she looked like she was teetering because of the winds of adversity and the uncertainty but she was holding on to her gaze, locked on with Jesus walking in ways through what is happening on Earth that were supernatural. James 1:12 was spoke: My promise is sure: ‘Blessed are those who persevere under trial, because when they have stood the test, they will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.’
The trials are shaping you for the future that God has ordained. The open door is in front of you and behind it is the destiny filled with His promises and His blessing.
Lamentations 3:22-23
The steadfast love the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end’; they are new every morning, great is your faithfulness.
