Happy New Year, friends! No, that didn’t come out of left field…today is actually the beginning of a new year on the ancient Hebrew calendar! While most of the world celebrates January 1 as New Year’s Day, and Jews declare Rosh Hashanah (Feast of Trumpets) the beginning of the civil new year, God appoints time and has something different to say about the beginning of the year!

If you recall our teachings on God’s Calendar, you know that Passover, which happens in the spring, is the first of seven major Jewish feasts. According to Exodus 12:1-7, and Leviticus 23:4-5, God clearly defines the first month and the first day as He instituted Passover. Today, we acknowledge the first day of the first month, according to God’s timeline! We also look forward to Passover, which begins in 14 days.

It is interesting to know that God didn’t name the months or days. Names used today, even on the Hebrew calendar, originate in paganism! In Genesis, God identifies the days of creation as the first day, the second day, the third day, etc, and He never altered that! Idol worship changed the names of days to “Sun” day, “Moon” day, “Thor’s” day, etc. Totally pagan!

Nor does the Bible identify names of Hebrew months. Names such as Nisan, Tammuz and Tishri originated in Babylonian captivity and still appear on Jewish calendars. Today is the first of Nisan…the first day of the first month.

God’s appointing of time is fascinating. Though we may not recognize this day as new year’s day, He had a specific purpose in establishing it, and understanding the Jewish feasts helps us understand God’s plans for Israel and for end times!

Our God is incredibly creative, and though He is outside of time, He created time for specific purposes to reveal special things. It is He, not us, who determines time, its duration and its boundaries.

We’ve got more to consider regarding God’s design of time, so stick with us over the next two days! It’s going to be good!