Does this message sound like deja vu? It should. As we approach the "Easter" holidays again I want to reemphasize this. We already did a message in detail about Jesus spending three days and three nights time in the grave meaning He died on a Wednesday. Actually I think there are at least two of those messages, but in this message, I want to state the importance of believing this and not beating the bush any longer. In the bible, the test of a prophet is if what he says comes to pass. In addition, most Christians will agree that the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus for our sins are CENTRAL for our faith. Right? Get this wrong, and who knows what else is messed up?
Jesus clearly stated in Matthew 12:40, "For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the whale's belly; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." In other words, the whale's belly represented the grave (or tomb) and it was THERE, (as opposed to the length of time he was actually dead) Jesus would spend THREE days and THREE nights. Very precise indeed. So, Jesus was not just proclaiming his death and limited time in the tomb, but the TIME as well. If the time was not important, Jesus would not have stated it nor would there have been prophecies about it. So, do not let anyone bamboozle you into believing that "... the length of time is not important. What is important is he died and rose again".
Was this number three in prophecy? Of course it was. Jesus just stated that was recorded in Jonah. Take away the literal interpretation of that, and one might as well ditch the book of Jonah. How about the writings of Moses? All throughout the scriptures dealing with numerical symbolism, we see the number THREE symbolic of God and His divine manifestation. Or.... as I always say, one cannot argue with the precise nature of mathematics. So the number three is no surprise when God is involved in something. And if we believe Him, then three should be three and not one and a half, or two or some other number. Of course one can try to stretch their counting a little by the way those three days were "reckoned" by Jewish counting. But, God left us a second witness---- the feast days in Leviticus 23.
The feast days were shadows of things to come, and as Paul clearly stated, "Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us....." (I Corinthians 5:7). Christ is associated with the Passover and Unleavened Bread. We know that is the reason that Jesus died on Passover, to fulfill that feast. But Unleavened Bread quickly followed Passover. When was that? It occurred sundown and was actually the start of the next day. For those who would count Friday as day one, Saturday as day two, and Sunday as day three, I must accurately point out that by this theory he DIED AND WAS BURIED the same day. But God started the counting the NEXT day as foreshadowed in the Unleavened Bread feast. Therefore, since he was interred at sundown, Jesus was (by God's reckoning) in the tomb at the start of SATURDAY! If one insists on Friday, then they effectively MAKE VOID THE PROPHETIC FEAST TIMING and deny prophecy. In that case, might as well throw out not only the book of Jonah, but also the first five books of the bible. Therefore, Jesus COULD NOT have died on a Friday and spend 3 days and nights in the tomb since God would call the first day Saturday.
There is one other feast to consider----- that of Firstfruits. Firstfruits foreshadowed the resurrection shown by this verse: "But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept." (I Corinthians 15:20). This feast fell on the "morrow after the (weekly) sabbath" according to Leviticus 23. That is the ONLY day of the week we can be certain of..... Sunday. If Passover occurred on a Wednesday when he died, then Unleavened Bread feast started at sundown when he was interred on Thursday. Thursday up to and including all of Saturday were three full days and the next day on his resurrection would be SUNDAY! This is the same day as the "morrow after the sabbath".
So you see, a Wednesday crucifixion is the only day that satisfies both prophetically and mathematically the criteria that Jesus set in Matthew 12:40. Get this----- and it is important ---- ANY OTHER DAY DENIES WHAT JESUS STATED and would in fact MAKE HIM A FALSE PROPHET!
Now, I'm going to get serious. Real serious. Any church that teaches the Friday crucifixion as truth is a FALSE CHURCH! If all this proof has been set before them and yet they refuse to believe it, then they are following TRADITIONS OF MEN. Sometimes I think God makes His Word a little tricky and don't say things point blank just to test if people will trust Him instead of following the masses. You see, the bible does not specifically say He died on a Wednesday. One has to deduce that. But if our critics think that we are reading too much into the bible, I must also say that there is nothing that stated he died on a Friday, either. So one has to take the prophecies and fit them for themselves. Did you ever wonder why the entire church world CAN'T COUNT TO THREE but they push it as if it were truth? It must look really, really stupid to God and I'm sure He makes them look stupid just to spite them for their lack of faith. It's ludicrous.
"But Liaf" asks a concerned Christian, "What if the leader of a church sincerely believes in a Friday crucifixion with no malice in mind?" Well, God can forgive the ignorance but once they discover the truth, must repent accordingly. That shows what path they are on. "But Liaf, what if the pastor knows this and does not tell the congregation? Are they all lost?" Again, they are responsible for what they know and when they find out, must repent. But I have a little scripture for those who would dummy up the congregation. It's found in Ezekiel 33: "But if the watchman see the sword come, and blow not the trumpet, and the people be not warned; if the sword come, and take any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at the watchman's hand.". Usually the sword is in the context of danger and an enemy. However, let's use the term sword as symbolic of God's word which is compared to a two-edged sword. In other words.....But if the pastor see the Word coming (by Liaf in this example) and blow not the trumpet..... What will happen? the people still die in their iniquity, but the blood is on the WATCHMAN! So, He is still a FALSE PROPHET because he said not the truth when he knew it and caused others to perish!
I want to close this by using a little logic. If a church teaches Friday crucifixion, we know they are false, but the converse is not true. I'm not saying those that teach a Wednesday crucifixion is automatically OK. There may be other false doctrine. However, when we see "Friday" we can rule them out. Don't kid yourselves; there are MANY (even mainline) denominations that believe in a Wednesday crucifixion. This is not from some obscure cult somewhere.
Finally, if you want more detail regarding the math and feast days, nothing is better than our "Sea Captain" message we done a few years back. Now that you know the truth, believe it! (and I promise you will not look stupid like the rest who can't even count to three!)