Bible Text: Leviticus 23 and Genesis 22 | Preacher: Pastor Steve
Rosh Hashanah is the Head of the Year
The Jewish New Year’s Day
Leviticus 23:23-25 Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, saying: In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, you shall have a Sabbath rest, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, a holy convocation. You shall do no customary work on it; and you shall offer an offering made by fire to the LORD.
REFRESHING: Acts 3:19 …so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord…
RESTORING: Lamentations 5:21 Turn us back to You, O Lord, and we will be restored…
REDEEMING: Exodus 6:6-7 I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgment.
EMC2
Evangelism! Maturity! Community!
Central to Rosh Hashanah is the Shofar whose main purpose is to awaken our hearts and minds to God’s mission for us.  To remind us of our spiritual duty to war against evil and to gather together as a community finding strength in the Lord God of Israel.
God is Faithful
Genesis 22:10-17 Then he reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son.  But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, Abraham! Abraham! Here I am, he replied. Do not lay a hand on the boy, he said. Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son. Abraham looked up and there in a thicket he saw a ram caught by its horns. He went over and took the ram and sacrificed it as a burnt offering instead of his son.
So Abraham called that place The LORD Will Provide. And to this day it is said, On the mountain of the LORD it will be provided. The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.
Our God will never fail you; never forsake you!
Hebrews 13:5-6 For God has said, I will never fail you. I will never forsake you. That is why we can say with confidence; The Lord is my helper, so I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?
The Shofar Sounds on the Day of the Messiah
 
Zechariah 9:14-16 The LORD will appear above his people; his arrows will fly like lightning! The Sovereign LORD will sound the trumpet…The LORD Almighty will protect his people, and they will subdue their enemies with sling stones…When that day arrives, the LORD their God will rescue his people, just as a shepherd rescues his sheep.
The Shofar was blown the moment Jesus gave up His life for us!
Matthew 27:45-46 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land. And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is, My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?
John 19:30 So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, It is finished! And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit.
Communion
Matthew 26:26-30 And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, Take, eat; this is My body. Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
Lord Jesus, I trust You! I believe in You! I receive You!
Luke 1:68-75 Praise the Lord, the God of Israel, because he has visited his people and redeemed them.  He has sent us a mighty Savior from the royal line of his servant David,  just as he promised through his holy prophets long ago.  Now we will be saved from our enemies and from all who hate us. He has been merciful to our ancestors by remembering his sacred covenant with them, the covenant he gave to our ancestor Abraham. We have been rescued from our enemies, so we can serve God without fear, in holiness and righteousness forever.