Reality themselves of Sukkot - Feast of Tabernacles 10/13-10/20 "2Peter1:13 I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body"

Levi23：33 The Lord said to Moses, 34 “Say to the Israelites: ‘On the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Lord’s Festival of Tabernacles begins, and it lasts for seven days. 39 “‘So beginning with the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the crops of the land, celebrate the festival to the Lord for seven days; the first day is a day of sabbath rest, and the eighth day also is a day of sabbath rest.

This feast was meaningful as the harvest festival. So it was commanded that they celebrate “on the fifteenth day of the seventh month when the land was harvested”.

Running agriculture is hard work. It would have been harder in the past when there were no machines. Moreover, no matter how much they work, it does not always produce fruit properly every year and there would have been years of disasters and bad harvests. Under such circumstances, the day when the whole harvest was completed is suppose to be a day of great joy. And at that time, it was a feast that they celebrated with gratitude to GOD who gave them the crops. Now what did they do at the time of Sukkot? Let’s read the continuation of the Bible.

42 Live in temporary shelters(booths,tabernacles) for seven days: All native-born Israelites are to live in such shelters 43 so your descendants will know that I had the Israelites live in temporary shelters when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.’”

At the Sukkot, they lived in a tent. It is exactly how the Israelites who were with Moses lived every day. So this was not told to them but set to remind them of the Lord’s guidance and grace for the later generations. Let’s read Deuteronomy too.

Deute8:2 Remember how the Lord your God led you all the way in the wilderness these forty years, to humble and test you in order to know what was in your heart, whether or not you would keep his commands. 3 He humbled you, causing you to hunger and then feeding you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had known, to teach you that man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. 4 Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.

“Man does not live on bread alone” is a famous quote Jesus spoke of in the Bible scripture. The Lord made the Israelites pass through the wilderness so that they could rely only on the Lord. However, at the same time, the Lord protected them according to the scripture, “Your clothes did not wear out and your feet did not swell during these forty years.”

At that time, the Israelites had many hardships, but it was a happy time in a sense because they saw the miracle of the Lord everyday, experienced the Lord, and were in the presence of the Lord. The Lord gave manna every day to feed them, and led them by pillars of cloud and pillars of fire. There was nothing that could leave their hearts away from the Lord.

And... afterwards, they entered the promised land. The Bible described it like this… 7...a land with brooks, streams, and deep springs gushing out into the valleys and hills; 8 a land with wheat and barley, vines and fig trees, pomegranates, olive oil and honey; 9 a land where bread will not be scarce and you will lack nothing...

This is exactly the type of heaven. When the Israelites entered such a wonderful land, Sukkot was commanded so that they would never forget the Lord' grace. It’s written like this continuously...

・・ 11 Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe his commands, his laws and his decrees that I am giving you this day. 12 Otherwise, when you eat and are satisfied, when you build fine houses and settle down, 13 and when your herds and flocks grow large and your silver and gold increase and all you have is multiplied, 14 then your heart will become proud and you will forget the Lord your God...

People rely only on the Lord when they go through the wilderness -it means hardship, sorrow, poverty, and illness- cannot be overcome by their own power. However, when gold and silver and possessions increase, and there are no problems with health, it’s so easy to take pride in our own power, to be high, to forget the Lord, and to leave the Lord. In fact, Israel forgot to celebrate the Sukkot feast right after this... It was in Nehemiah’s time that it was recovered again.

Nehemiah8:14 They found written in the Law, which the Lord had commanded through Moses, that the Israelites were to live in temporary shelters during the festival of the seventh month 16 So the people went out and brought back branches and built themselves temporary shelters ... 17 The whole company that had returned from exile built temporary shelters and lived in them. From the days of Joshua son of Nun until that day, the Israelites had not celebrated it like this. And their joy was very great.

From Joshua’s time just after Moses to Nehemiah, there is a gap of about 1000 years. So it means that Israel forgot the Sukkot feast for such a long time. In the meantime, their faith left the Lord and the country was divided into north and south. Northern Israel was destroyed by Assyria, and South Judah was captured by Babylon.

But the Lord never abandoned them. They were allowed to return to Israel by the grace of the Lord. And they, who came back from Babylon, gathered in the seventh month and restored the Sukkot feast after a thousand years.

They said that they found a scripture about Sukkot in “the law (Torah) the Lord commanded through Moses”. About the Law (Torah), the New Testament says like this...

Heb10:The law (Torah) is only a shadow of the good things that are coming? not the realities themselves....

This is the scripture we read last week. Things written in the law (Torah) is only a shadow of the good things that are coming. Namely, the Sukkot feast is a “shadow” as well but not the realities themselves. Then what does this feast teach us?

Our earthly life is also a process on our way to heaven like how the Israelites lived in a tent in the wilderness until they entered the promised land. They lived in a tent, and we live in a temporary tent which is our fleshly body. Apostle Peter writes;

2Peter1:13 I think it is right to refresh your memory as long as I live in the tent of this body, 14 because I know that I will soon put it aside, as our Lord Jesus Christ has made clear to me.

Apostle Peter calls his body as “the tent”. And he expresses that his death is “putting it aside”.

Some people think that their body is “I” itself. However, we will leave this body sooner or later. After I passed 40, I have pains in many parts of my body, I cannot run as fast as I used to. And someday we all must die. However, thankfully the Lord has prepared heavenly bodies for us. Let’s check the Bible.

1Corinth15:40 There are also heavenly bodies and there are earthly bodies; but the splendor of the heavenly bodies is one kind, and the splendor of the earthly bodies is another. 44 it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. 53 For the perishable must clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality.

Apostle Peter said, “I know that I will soon put it aside”. And apostle Paul said ”the Lord will have us clothe spiritual (heavenly) bodies, imperishable bodies.

After the Israelites entered the promised land, they remembered the Lord’s grace recalling their living in a tent in the wilderness. Like that, we will eventually finish our hardships on earth and thank the Lord’s grace on earth in the kingdom of heaven to have the eternal feast together with Him. This is the very reality of the Sukkot feast.

The Israelites who returned from Babylonia remembered the suffering from their captivity, hardships of their ancestors, and at the same time the Lord’s guidance and grace. We will also remember our hardship and the Lord’s grace on earth and we will give a feast of thanks to the Lord in heaven on the Day.

But we still have to walk on the wilderness-like earth in our tent (natural body) for a while. And the end of time will come.

Then, how should we think about Sukkot, while we are here? Apostle Peter says...

NKJV 1Peter2:10 (you) who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy. 11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,

Sukkot is a feast to remember life in the wilderness after entering the promised land. But for us who have not entered the promised land (the kingdom of heaven), Sukkot is a feast that we remember we are sojourners and pilgrims. Believers at the time of the Old Testament also had such attitude...

NKJV Heb11:13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off [e]were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.

Therefore, even though we’re successful on earth, we should not think that we will be so forever. And even though we are in sorrows and pains now, it will not be long.

Then, what should we do on earth? We know that our Lord Christ Jesus showed us that as an example. Apostle John wrote like this...

John1:14 The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

It is written “his dwelling among us”. “Dwell” here means “to tent” or “encamp”. And this word has the same origin of “Sukkot” according to one who knows the original language well.

E - S w o r d : Σ κ η ν ο ́ω ( S k e ̄ n o o ) : t o t e n t o r e n c a m p , t h a t i s , ( f i g u r a t i v e l y ) t o o c c u p y ( a s a m a n s i o n ) o r ( s p e c i f i c a l l y ) t o r e s i d e ( a s G o d d i d i n t h e T a b e r n a c l e o f o l d , a s y m b o l f o p r o t e c t i o n a n d c o m m u n i o n ) : - d w e l l .

Christ Jesus is the Son of God, the most high and one who has no shortage. This great one wore weak flesh and endured so much hardship that he had nowhere to lay his head. And finally, he was crucified to shed his blood.

It was to show us the love of God. This was not possible to show if He was in heaven. He came down to earth wearing a weak body to have hardship and shed his blood.

So, for the rest of time on earth, we should give thanks to his love and show his love. Jeremiah says like this...

Jeremiah2:2 “Go and proclaim in the hearing of Jerusalem:“This is what the Lord says:“‘I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the wilderness, through a land not sown. 3 Israel was holy to the Lord, the firstfruits of his harvest...

Israel loved the Lord best “through the wilderness, through a land not sown”. It was only the Lord whom they could rely on. The Lord was also pleased with the relationship with Israel and said, “I remember the devotion of your youth, how as a bride you loved me and followed me through the wilderness, through a land not sown”.

Therefore, we remember that this world is gorgeous by looks but spiritually like a wilderness. And we remember that we are in temporary flesh bodies. If now you are in suffering, worries, sadness and illness, let’s get closer to the Lord through them. And let’s rely on the Lord more and develop a love relationship with him more.

And to love the Lord is to love the visible neighbors. Receiving the love of the Lord and practicing love are what we should remember at this Sukkot feast.

And as the sight of God the Father, Sukkot is the feast that he accepts us as a harvest. This is the plan of the final feast. Jesus said “my Father is the gardener.”(John15:1)

God the Father would be pleased when we are saved and going up to His place, heaven, as a farmer is pleased with his harvest. And he endures our immaturity and hopes we grow to be a good fruit.

One day, soon in heaven, we will celebrate the final feast of the Lord. Let’s walk without regret for that. Let’s share the Gospel and his love to people around us. It’s our hope that we will celebrate the Lord’s feast together with all people with great joy in heaven.