Author and pastor Mark Biltz spent years immersed in the biblical book of Revelation, when his eyes were opened to how the feasts of the Lord were directly tied to the unfolding of end-time events.
In his newest book, Decoding the Antichrist and the End Times: What the Bible Says and What the Future Holds, Biltz writes about the “most exciting revelation I ever had concerning end-time understanding.”
“In the book of Revelation, we find references to over 600 verses from the Old Testament,” Biltz said. “Therefore, the Christian view of the coming Messiah can really only properly be understood by looking through the Jewish lens.
“The feasts of the Lord are in Leviticus 23, where God lays out His divine appointments according to His calendar for the timing of His feasts such as Passover, Unleavened Bread, Pentecost, Trumpets, Yom Kippur, Tabernacles and others,” he added. “To properly understand who the Messiah is, we must look at His Second Coming and the book of Revelation through the eyes of the feasts. In Genesis 1:14, God said He created the sun and the moon for signs, seasons, days and years. We think this refers to our calendar, made up of winter, spring, summer and fall, our days of the week and our year, but there are many calendars in the world. The current pagan calendar most of the world uses today is only 2,000 years old, so it can’t be an original.”
For example, the calendar most American Christians know is very scientific and accurate, as it is based totally on the cycle of the sun. The Muslim calendar is also very scientifically accurate, Biltz said, as it is based solely on the cycle of the moon.
“But in Genesis, God told us the calendar He uses is based on both the sun and the moon,” the author added. “When He talked about how they were to determine the days and years, He was referring to His holy days such as Passover and Yom Kippur. The years referred to the seven-year cycle in which Israel was to let the land rest and settle all financial debts. It was known as the Shemitah year.”
Biltz added that the Jubilee year—every 50th year—is also significant, when the land returned to its original owner.
“Nowhere are any of these recognized on our regular calendar or the Muslim calendar, so our calendars are definitely not God’s calendar,” he said. “We must realize that we need to operate on two different calendars: the one God created, if we care about His schedule, and the one man created, because we still live in this world. The time is coming when our pagan calendar will be trashed and all believers will be following God’s calendar, when He creates the new heavens and new earth (Isa. 66:22–23).”
In his studies and writings, Biltz also discovered that the feasts of the Lord were actually dress rehearsals, or shadows, of what was to come.
“Leviticus 23 tells us that on the 14th day of the first month before the evening is the Lord’s Passover,” he said. “And on the 15th day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread Unto the Lord. Notice it says the Lord’s Passover, not the Jewish Passover. This is also not referring to Jan. 14 or 15!
“Why do you think the Lord died on Passover, He was buried on Unleavened Bread, He rose on the Feast of Firstfruits and the Spirit was poured out on Shavuot, which we know as Pentecost?” Biltz asked. “Do you believe the Lord is the same yesterday, today and forever? Then if He fulfilled the spring feasts to the day of His first coming, He will also fulfill the fall feasts to the day of His Second Coming!”
Biltz said he is not setting dates in Decoding the Antichrist and the End Times, but, rather, revealing established patterns in the Word of God. Imagine, as God said in Ecclesiastes 3:1, there is a time and a season for everything done under the sun, and He has appointed specific times when He will intersect human history.
“Based on this understanding, I believe the prophetic events of the Feast of Trumpets will be fulfilled during the appointed calendar time for the Feast of Trumpets in some year,” Biltz said. “The same will happen for Yom Kippur and the Feast of Tabernacles. The festivals are shadows of things to come.”
Decoding the Antichrist and the End Times takes an in-depth look at some of the deepest questions surrounding the Antichrist, such as the following:
- What does the Bible say about the Antichrist’s tactics and his motivation?
- Will he be a Muslim, a Jew or a professed Christian—or something else?
- Will the Antichrist work through modern technology to seize control?
Mark Biltz is founder of El Shaddai Ministries and a well-known and popular commentator on the feasts of the Lord. In fact, he has produced a series of DVDs on the feasts that have gone around the world. Biltz is also the author of Blood Moons and God’s Day Timer. His research and theories have led to guest appearances on both radio and television as well as being featured on the covers of magazines.
Decoding the Antichrist and the End Times is published by Charisma House, which has published books that challenge, encourage, teach and equip Christians, including 14 New York Times’ best-sellers. {eoa}
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