9.13.26 | The Appointed Times Of Redemption | Pastor Rod & Teacher Melvine Walker

God’s appointed times reveal that redemption is not just a truth written in a book. God put redemption on a calendar. Leviticus 23 calls Passover, Firstfruits, Pentecost, Trumpets, Atonement, and Tabernacles “my feasts,” not merely Israel’s feasts or Jewish feasts. These moedim are God’s set times, sacred appointments where His people stop ordinary life and remember who delivered, redeemed, cleansed, provided for, and dwelt among them.

The shofar gives the church a living picture of that redemption. The horn was once alive, bent, hollowed out, and unable to make a sound by itself. God’s breath through a hollow vessel releases an unmistakable cry. The shofar says that a believer cannot proclaim anything real until self gets out of the way and God breathes through that life. The bent shape preaches humility and repentance. Before there is proclamation, there must be prostration. The kingdom does not begin with self-exaltation, building a platform, or establishing a name. The kingdom says, simply bow.

Yom Teruah, the day of blowing or shouting, calls God’s people to attention. The trumpet is a spiritual alarm: wake up, return to God, remove what separates the heart from Him, and live ready for the King’s return. The church is not called to anxiety, but readiness, watchfulness, and faithfulness. The trumpet warns the harvest not to fall asleep because the King is coming.

Exodus 12 shows that God changed Israel’s calendar before Israel even walked out of Egypt. Redemption creates a new beginning. When the blood redeems, Egypt loses the right to define identity. The old captivity, old labels, old bondage, and old life no longer get the final word. God gives the redeemed a new beginning and calls them to remember it.

The feast pattern preaches Christ from beginning to end. Passover reveals the Lamb and the blood. Unleavened Bread calls the old life and sin out of the house of the heart. Firstfruits declares that death has been defeated and more are coming out of the grave. Pentecost reveals the Spirit poured out, empowering the church to become God’s witnesses, His shofar. Trumpets awakens expectation, Atonement reveals Christ the greater High Priest, and Tabernacles points to God dwelling with His people forever.

The feasts do not earn salvation, and the Hebrew calendar does not make anyone more righteous. The shadows must not become the object of worship. Christ is the substance. The roots do not replace Jesus; the roots help God’s people see Jesus more clearly. Sacred things must not become common, worship must not become entertainment, and preaching must bring conviction that produces quick repentance.

##

---

Key Takeaways

• 1. God put redemption on a calendar. God’s appointed times show that remembrance is not optional decoration around faith. The calendar itself proclaims deliverance, cleansing, provision, and God’s purpose for history. What one generation does not intentionally remember, the next generation can easily forget. [32:43]
• 2. The bent vessel becomes God’s voice. The shofar cannot sound unless breath moves through its hollow frame. Pride must bend before God can make a life into a clear proclamation of His kingdom. Before there is proclamation, there must be prostration. [17:12]
• 3. Redemption gives a new beginning. God changed Israel’s calendar while Israel was still in Egypt, showing that deliverance redefines identity before circumstances fully change. The blood removes Egypt’s right to name the redeemed. Salvation is not a minor adjustment to the old life; it is a new beginning recorded before God. [41:42]
• 4. The trumpet calls the church awake. Yom Teruah is not noise for noise’s sake, but a spiritual alarm. The sound calls distracted hearts back into alignment, repentance, and readiness for Christ’s return. The King is coming, so the church must not sleep through the harvest. [24:39]
• 5. Christ is substance, not shadow. The feasts reveal the architecture of redemption, but they are never a substitute for Jesus. Religious observance can become another shadow if it loses sight of the One who cast it. Christ fulfills what the appointed times proclaim.
  
  ## [69:21]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:40] - Times of Redemption
• [03:36] - Slow Down and Be Shepherded
• [06:47] - A Burden for Biblical Truth
• [10:22] - The Shofar as a Spiritual Picture
• [16:40] - The Bent Horn and Humility
• [20:10] - Yom Teruah: Day of Shouting
• [24:39] - Wake Up, Repent, Live Ready
• [28:55] - God Calls Them My Feasts
• [32:18] - Redemption Written on a Calendar
• [41:42] - Redemption Creates a New Beginning
• [46:46] - Holy Convocation and Sacred Assembly
• [57:43] - The Feast Pattern Reveals Christ
• [62:56] - Trumpets, Atonement, and Tabernacles
• [68:30] - Follow Christ, Not the Shadow

Bible Reading

Leviticus 23:1-2
“The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, These are the appointed feasts of the LORD that you shall proclaim as holy convocations; they are my appointed feasts.’” [32:43]

Exodus 12:1-2
“The LORD said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, ‘This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you.’” [41:42]

Colossians 2:16-17
“Therefore let no one pass judgment on you in questions of food and drink, or with regard to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” [01:09:21]

1 Corinthians 15:20
“But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” [01:01:05]

Observation questions

1. In Leviticus 23:1-2, what words does God use to describe these feasts, and who does He identify as their owner? [35:16]
2. According to Exodus 12:1-2, where was Israel when God declared a new beginning for their calendar? [41:42]
3. What physical features of the shofar are highlighted, and what has to happen before it can release its sound? [11:35]
4. What three responses does the trumpet call forth: awakening, repentance, and readiness? [24:39]

Interpretation questions

1. If God calls the feasts “my appointed feasts,” how does that change the way believers should view them—not as a way to earn salvation, but as times that reveal God’s redemption? [32:03]
2. Israel received a new calendar while still living in Egypt. What does this show about how God’s redemption gives a person a new identity before every outward circumstance has changed? [42:17]
3. A shofar is hollow and bent before breath produces its cry. How does this picture explain why humility, surrender, and repentance must come before a believer can clearly proclaim God’s truth? [17:12]
4. Colossians says that festivals are shadows, while Christ is the substance. What dangers arise when people dismiss the shadows completely, and what dangers arise when they focus on the shadow more than Jesus? [01:09:35]

Application questions

1. Redemption gives a new beginning, and the blood removes Egypt’s right to define the redeemed. What old label, failure, bondage, or story has tried to keep defining you? What would it look like this week to agree with the new identity God gives you? [43:15]
2. The trumpet calls God’s people out of routine and complacency. Where have you become spiritually sleepy—perhaps in prayer, Scripture, worship, repentance, or serving others? What is one specific step toward wakefulness you can take this week? [25:03]
3. The bent shofar pictures humility: before proclamation comes prostration. Is there an area where pride, self-promotion, defensiveness, or the need to control is keeping you from bowing before God? What could surrender look like in that area? [18:17]
4. God’s appointed times called His people to stop ordinary life and remember who delivered, cleansed, provided for, and dwelt with them. What are one or two specific ways you or your household can intentionally remember God’s faithfulness rather than letting it fade into the background? [33:47]
5. Sacred things should not become common. Are prayer, gathering with believers, worship, or God’s presence ever treated as optional or familiar in your daily life? What would it look like to set apart time for God with greater attention and honor? [49:10]
6. Christ is the substance, and the feasts are shadows that point to Him. How can you grow in learning the biblical roots of redemption while keeping Jesus—not religious activity, knowledge, or tradition—at the center? [01:08:15]