Christ In The Old Testament Festivals - Leviticus 22-24

Leviticus 23:1-2 (ESV)

Feasts of the LORD

The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, These are the appointed feasts of the LORD that you shall proclaim as holy convocations; they are my appointed feasts.

In chapter 23 we have the list of seven feast the nation of Israel was to observe.   As all the Old Testament does, these feasts are a shadow of the sacrifice of Christ and the establishment of His rule and reign in the New Testament age.   Here are the seven feasts mentioned in this chapter:

1. The Passover (v. 5)

2. The Days of Unleavened Bread (vv. 6–8)

3. The Feast of Weeks, called the Day of 

4. Pentecost in the New Testament (vv. 15–22)

5. The Feast of Trumpets (vv. 23–25)

6. The Day of Atonement (vv. 26–32)

7. The Feast of Tabernacles (vv. 33–39)

The Eighth Day Feast, called the Last Great Day in the New Testament (v. 39)

Each of these feasts/days were established by God to show the nation how to approach Him.  When Jesus came and sacrificed His life for us, He also fulfilled the real meaning in these feast through His death and the establishment of the Church.  Note:

1.  Passover points to the sacrifice of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins (1 Corinthians 11:23–34; Luke 22:14–23).

2.  The Days of Unleavened Bread point to removing sin and pride from our lives and taking on the obedience and mind of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 5:6–8; John 6:4, 31–58).

3.  The Day of Pentecost points to the giving of the Holy Spirit to the Church of God (Acts 2).

4.  The Feast of Trumpets points to the Day of the Lord described in the book of Revelation—the year preceding the return of Jesus Christ, during which the seventh seal will be opened and the seven trumpets of God will be blown (Revelation 6:17; 8:1–13; 9:1–21; 11:15; Isaiah 34:8; 63:4).

5. The Day of Atonement points to the day when Satan the devil will be imprisoned for 1,000 years and no longer able to influence mankind (Leviticus 16:6–10, 21–26; Revelation 20:1–3).

6. The Feast of Tabernacles pictures the 1,000 year reign of Jesus Christ and His saints on planet Earth (Revelation 20:4–6; Zechariah 14:16–21; Isaiah 11:1–16).

7. The Last Great Day pictures the Great White Throne Judgment that will occur after the Millennium, when all of those who have ever lived and died without knowing the truth will be given their first genuine opportunity to know Him and practice His way of life (John 7:37–39; Revelation 20:11–13; Matthew 11:21–24; 12:41–42).

(Source taken from https://www.lcg.org/beliefs/new-testament-church-kept-holy-days-bible)

The point of the text is to realize that God did not have two separate ways to approach Him.  Rather He had a way through the Levitical priesthood in the old economy, working with a nation and He the same way in the new economy but through His Son, working with the Church.   God is approachable and He makes a way to approach Him, by faith in Christ.   The Old Testament was the shadow of Christ.  The New Testament was the fulfillment of the shadow in Christ.