Yes, today is New Year’s Day. At least those of the Jewish faith. It is Rosh Hashanah, which literally translates as “Head of the Year.” Rosh Hashanah is one of the “appointed feasts of the LORD.” We read in Leviticus 23:23-25, “The Lord said to Moses, ‘Give the following instructions to the people of Israel. On the first day of the appointed month in early autumn, you are to observe a day of complete rest. It will be an official day for holy assembly, a day commemorated with loud blasts of a trumpet. You must do no ordinary work on that day. Instead, you are to present special gifts to the Lord.’”
Rosh Hashanah is also known as Yom Teruah or the Day of Trumpets. The word teruah means “to shout or make a noise.” As a result, this holiday is marked by the blowing of the shofar or ram’s horn in Jewish synagogues around the world.
Rosh Hashanah begins a ten-day period leading up to the holiest day of the Jewish calendar, Yom Kippur or the Day of Atonement. The sounding of the shofar on Rosh Hashanah is meant to be a wake-up blast. Reminding us that the time is near for the Day of Atonement. The ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are days of great introspection, heart-searching and self-examination. To this day, the sound of the shofar for the Jew is intended as a call to examine one’s life, to make amends with all those one may have wronged in the previous year. The primary theme of Rosh Hashanah is one of repentance.
Our New Year’s celebrations include parties, food, drink, and of course fireworks. Jewish people enjoy sweets made with apples, honey, raisins, figs, and pomegranates. Eating sweet things symbolizes the desire for a “sweet” year.
According to rabbinic tradition, on Rosh Hashanah one’s destiny is sealed. The righteous are written into the Book of Life, and the wicked are written into the Book of Death. However, most people won’t be written into either book. Instead, they are given these ten days until Yom Kippur to exercise repentance and self-examination and then seal their fate. Then, on the Day of Atonement, everyone has his or her name inscribed into one of the two books.
As Christians, we are not required to observe the LORD’S appointed feasts of the Hebrew Bible. Still, Rosh Hashanah points us to an even greater reality. For those who have placed their faith in the Jewish Messiah, Jesus, we understand the true meaning of the call to repentance and of turning our hearts toward God. Surely, we all want our names to be written in the Book of Life. As the apostle John wrote, “Nothing evil will be allowed to enter, nor anyone who practices shameful idolatry and dishonesty – but only those whose names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life” (Revelation 21:27). The Bible is clear. On the Day of Judgment, “…anyone whose name was not found recorded in the Book of Life was thrown into the lake of fire” (Revelation 20:15).
Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For God made Christ, who never sinned, to be the offering for our sin, so that we could be made right with God through Christ.” Therefore, anyone who has placed their trust in the atoning work of Jesus through His life, death, burial, and resurrection have their names written into the Lamb’s Book of Life. If you have not yet done so, today is a good day for it – Rosh Hashanah. A new year. A new life. Shana tovah (pronounced shah-NAH toe-VAH, which literally means “good year”) my friends. Shana tovah.
—————————————————–
Remember you can email praise reports and prayer requests to southchurchprayer@gmail.com. I lift them up every Wednesday at 4:00 pm on Facebook Live.