It is an amazing thing that in the world, we expect there to be authority and a hierarchy. However, in the church and family, we do not want anyone to be in charge. This attitude leads to a state of confusion. Someone has to make a final decision. Someone has to be in charge. Point two of the covenant model is hierarchy or representation. The question is who represents God in the earth? Paul said in 1 Corinthians 11:3 regarding hierarchy, "But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God." Here is authority structure with a vengeance. Also, God expects us to feast. This is because we are to praise God for His faithful bountifulness to us. The feasts are no longer binding, but the principle of worship and praising God for His goodness has not been done away with.
Application
To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.
Exodus 23:14-19 reads, "Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year. 15Thou shalt keep the feast of unleavened bread: (thou shalt eat unleavened bread seven days, as I commanded thee, in the time appointed of the month Abib; for in it thou camest out from Egypt: and none shall appear before me empty:) 16And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field: and the feast of ingathering, which is in the end of the year, when thou hast gathered in thy labours out of the field. 17Three times in the year all thy males shall appear before the Lord GOD. 18Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leavened bread; neither shall the fat of my sacrifice remain until the morning. 19The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring into the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk." God here instructs the children of Israel to have hold three feasts each year. The first is Passover, the second is Pentecost, and the third is Tabernacles or Booths.
According to Gary North in his book Tools of Dominion, these feasts had to do with citizenship. Paul wrote in Philippians 3:20, "For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ." The word here for conversation is citizenship. Our source of citizenship is therefore heavenly. We have dual citizenship with the heavenly always being the superior of the two. To be a citizen in Israel required circumcision. The females were represented by the circumcised male, whether father, husband, or priest. This gave them access to God’s feasts.
Baptism in the New Testament has replaced physical circumcision. Matthew 3:16-17 record the baptism of the Lord Jesus Christ, "And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Jesus was circumcised and He was also baptized. Christians are baptized and this is a means to open up the feast of communion to them. In other words, it gives them entrance or citizenship to the heavenly commonwealth. It is important for Christians to be baptized as soon as practicable.
Also, the males were to appear before the Lord three times a year. These were those who were in covenant with God. They had to be physically circumcised. Most who followed the law would have been so since the eighth day as was commanded by the Lord. The males were to represent his family before the Lord. Paul wrote in 1 Timothy 2:11-14, "Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection. 12But I suffer not a woman to teach, nor to usurp authority over the man, but to be in silence. 13For Adam was first formed, then Eve. 14And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression." Paul had also written in Ephesians 5:22-24, "Wives, submit yourselves unto your own husbands, as unto the Lord. 23For the husband is the head of the wife, even as Christ is the head of the church: and he is the saviour of the body. 24Therefore as the church is subject unto Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in every thing." The wife in religious assemblies is to be in submission to her husband. She is not to usurp his authority that he has over her.
Paul makes it clear that the woman is not to be the teacher of doctrine in the church. In the home, she can teach her children with the oversight of her husband and other women as Titus 2:3-5, but never the men. By Adam being created first, this gave him preeminence over Eve. She is to help him in his calling before the Lord. She has her sphere of influence in the home. Paul has also said in 1 Corinthians 14:34-35, "Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience, as also saith the law. 35And if they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church." This is plain enough for any of us to comprehend it, if we want to. This forbids a woman to be a preacher of a congregation of men. They are to be under the authority of their husbands, fathers, or elders of the church.
Conclusion
It was God’s idea to have feasts. There is nothing wrong with rejoicing in the abundance that God has provided us with. This is why it is good to have celebrations especially the Lord’s Supper. Males are to take up their rightful authority. Women are to be submissive to proper authority.
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