AWAKE – REPENT – LOOK UP
Teshuvah A Spiritual Preparation for the Day of the Lord

“For the day of the Lord is at hand…The great day of the Lord is near; It is near and hastens quickly”  ~ Zephaniah 1:7,14

AWAKE

“Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed”
~ Romans 13:11

“So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober”  ~ 1 Thessalonians 5:6

REPENT

“Seek the Lord while He may be found, Call upon Him while He is near. Let the wicked forsake his way, And the unrighteous man his thoughts;
Let him return to the Lord, And He will have mercy on him; And to our God, For He will abundantly pardon.”  ~ Isaiah 55:6,7

“Who is a God like You, Pardoning iniquity And passing over the transgression of the remnant of His heritage? 
He does not retain His anger forever, Because He delights in mercy.” ~ Micah 7:18

LOOK- UP

“Now when these things begin to happen, look up and lift up your heads, because your redemption draws near”  ~ Luke 21:28

“Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”  ~ Luke 21:36

PREAMBLE

The forty-day season called Teshuvah (return or repentance) starts thirty days before the Feast of Trumpets, and is a shadow of God’s prophetic plan.

Teshuvah and 10 Days of Awe - One prophetic view divides the [40] days as follows:

•    The thirty days of the month of Elul - the waiting Church called to repentance

•    Day of the Feast of Trumpets - the Rapture (Rosh Hashanah is a 2-day feast “no man knows the [which] day or the [which] hour”)

•    The [7] days between the Feast of Trumpets and Day of Atonement – represent the Tribulation

•    The Day of Atonement - the Second Coming of Christ

Below are 30-days of links to select readings, thoughts, prayers and verses to meditate on for each day of Elul in preparation for the potential of the Day of the Lord.  We are not stating that this September is the Day of the Lord, however, per the signs of the season we are currently in (see “Awesome Signs, Wonders & Insights of 2015” http://watchmansview.com/Signs_%26_Wonders_of_GOD.html and “The 777.7 Coincidence!!?? - The Blood Moons & Shmeta Link” http://watchmansview.com/Commentary_-_The_777.7_Coincidence%21%21.html, it certainly is possible that the Lord could return at anytime!!  A HIGH WATCH TIME on the prophetic calendar!  The evidence in the Signs and Wonders should draw the believer who is paying attention into a reasonable verdict, and so much so as the year and day approaches.  The Teshuvah is a good thing to do every year at this time, just in case that year is the year of our harpazo!

Save this link, forward to friends and/or repost on your own blog, website or social media page, so you and others can refer back to each day posted below, as a daily reminder and guide during the month of Elul to provide a meaningful Teshuvah.

Beginning on Rosh Chodesh Elul and continuing until the day before Rosh Hashanah, it is customary to blow the shofar every day (except for Shabbat – the day of rest). The sound of the shofar calls us to return to the LORD and seek His face – to awaken from our slumber and examine ourselves before

God and the soon coming of the Day of the Lord. 

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

“But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, and the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any person from among them, he is taken away in his iniquity; but his blood I will require at the watchman’s hand.”  Ezekiel 33:6

MARANATHA!  ~ Yeshua Ha-Mashiach (Jesus the Messiah) come quickly ~

NOTE:  Dates Updated for 2017 below

Day 1 – August 22 – Elul 1

THE MONTH OF ELUL - SELICHOT & TESHUVAH

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3y6Z0C42mJg

The Season of Repentance

“In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying “Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand” (Matthew 3:1-2)

Before John the Baptist was born, we learn that his father, Zechariah, was told of his impending birth, of his life’s purpose and that “the words would be fulfilled in their season” (Luke 1:20).  The “words” he referred to were the words that defined John’s mission.  The Scripture says of John that: “He will turn many of the children of Israel to the Lord their God.  He will also go before Him in the spirit and power of Elijah, to turn the heart of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just, to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.” (Luke 1:16-17)

To turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to the fathers is exactly what the angel announced John was being sent to do (Luke 1:17).  He was to come and provoke the people – the children – to “turn.”  In Hebrew, “turn” comes from the root shuv. This word literally means “to turn back” – to turn back into the direction from which you came.  Perhaps a better way to put it would be to “return.”  The implication of course is to “return” to the Lord.

The word shuv is the root word from which we obtain the word teshuvah, translated in English as “repentance.”  In short, Elijah’s end-time mission is to call God’s people to repentance – to return to Him – before that great and dreadful day.  Consequently, this was also John’s mission as forerunner to the Messiah.

So when John arrived on the scene, we shouldn’t be surprise to see that he came calling the people to return to the Lord.  Why?  Because the Kingdom of Heaven was “at hand” meaning the “day of the Lord” was approaching.  He came preaching repentance – teshuvah – and specifically during a season that preceded the advent of a great and ominous event – the arrival of the Lord.  Therefore, we are to understand that all great and miraculous events in the lives of God’s people are always initiated by teshuvah – repentance.

Days of Repentance

From a Hebraic perspective, it has always been understood that the holy festival called Yom Kippur or “Day of Atonement” was symbolic of the coming “day of the Lord.”  The reason for this association is the ominous tone of the day.  It was on this day that the High Priest would enter into the Most Holy Place, into the very Presence of the Most High God, to make atonement for himself and for all the congregation of Israel.  Their fortune, not to mention their very lives, depended on the outcome of this day.  So, when it became apparent that God had forgiven their sins – by virtue of the scarlet thread that miraculously turned white (Isaiah 1:18) – then Israel was prepared to enter the next prominent and most joyous of all seasons, the Feast of Tabernacles.

Sukkot or the Feast of Tabernacles is the particular feast that has always been synonymous with the Kingdom.  So, when John announced the the “Kingdom of Heaven was at hand,” he was, in effect, alluding to a season on God’s timetable hinted at by the feast called Sukkot.  That he also admonished the people to first repent, speaks of the approaching Day of the Lord – a season hinted at by Yom Kippur.  However, it must be understood that the all-important repentance must take place BEFORE the great and dreadful day of the Lord and BEFORE the Kingdom.  In other words, teshuvah must begin before these appointed times.  Consequently, there is an appointed time for teshuvah itself.

Yom Kippur and Sukkot actually begin with Yom Teruah (a.k.a. Rosh Hashanah) or the Feast of Trumpets.  This, the first day of the Hebrew new year and the month of Tishri.  This feast day is also referred to as Yom ha Din – the future Day of Judgment (Bema Seat).  If this is the day when God judges man then it would behoove us to repent BEFORE the Day of Judgment and the subsequent feast days.

Understanding this fully, Judaism has long acknowledged that the Hebrew month of Elul is the beginning of the season of teshuvah.

Because it is the Hebrew month that precedes the month of Tishri, Elul begins thirty days before the Feast of Trumpets.  The first day is actually observed over two days beginning the 30th of AV (as Elul only has 29 days) and continuing throughout the entire month, the shofar is blown every day except on Shabbat and the day before Rosh Hashanah.   And so, God’s people set their hearts to “turn back” to God, to His Word and to His ways.  By announcing the advent of the season of repentance, the shofar really serves to remind God’s people of the approach of Judgment Day.  Thus, the alarming sound of the shofar – symbolically the voice of God – is to awaken those who are slumbering to the need to hastily return to the Holy One of Israel.

Indeed, the Apostle Paul echoed this warning when he admonished God’s people to awake so that we might return to God.

“Now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.  The night is far spent, the day is at hand.  Therefore let is cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.  Let us walk properly, as in the day, not revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.” Romans 13:11-13

“Awake, you who sleep.  Arise from the dead, and Christ will give you light.  See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil.”  Ephesians 5:14-16

Due to the seriousness of our need to repent, and so that we sill not forget to turn to God with all our heart, the shofar is repeatedly blown for the entire 30-days period in the month of Elul (except for the days of Shabbat and the day before Rosh Hashanah).  And so, the 30-days of Elul are considered to be a time to reflect upon your destiny; a time to seek God concerning your spiritual future and a time to obtain mercy.

Consequently, this season is regarded as a time of intense spiritual reflection and total repentance in advance of God’s final decree for your life.

Source: Paraphrased from 40 Days of Teshuvah by Perry Stone

Shabbat – no observance of the Shofar

Day 2 – August 23 – Elul 2

ELUL & SELICHOT – THE SEASON OF TESHUVAH (REPENTANCE)
IN SPIRITUAL PREPARATION FOR THE DAY OF THE LORD

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/elul.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 3 – August 24 – Elul 3

40-DAYS OF SELICHOT

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 4 – August 25 – Elul 4

TURING BACK TO GOD

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Meditations/Teshuvah/teshuvah.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 5 – August 26 – Elul 5

TESHUVAH AND GOD’S LOVE

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Love/love.html

Shabbat – no observance of the Shofar

Day 6 – August 27 – Elul 6

THOUGHTS ON REPENTANCE

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Teshuvah/teshuvah.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 7 – August 28 – Elul 7

THE IMPORTANCE OF TRUTH
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Truth/truth.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 8 – August 29 – Elul 8

PRAYER AND TESHUVAH
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Articles/Prayer/prayer.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 9 – August 30 – Elul 9

TESHUVAH OF THE TONGUE

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Meditations/Overflow/overflow.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 10 – August 31 – Elul 10

TESHUVAH OF THE MIND
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Metanoia/metanoia.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 11 – September 1 – Elul 11

TESHUVAH OF THE HEART
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Heart/heart.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 12 – September 2 – Elul 12

TESHUVAH AND DOUBLE-MINDEDNESS
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Scripture/Parashah/Summaries/Shoftim/Wholehearted/wholehearted.html

Shabbat – no observance of the Shofar

Day 13 – September 3 – Elul 13

TESHUVAH AND RENEWAL
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Renewal/renewal.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 14 – September 4 – Elul 14

TESHUVAH AND DESIRE

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Desire/desire.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 15 – September 5 – Elul 15

TESHUVAH AND RECONCILIATION
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Reconciliation/reconciliation.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 16 – September 6 – Elul 16

GOD’S ABSENCE AND TESHUVAH
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Rosh_Hashannah/Divine_Absence/divine_absence.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 17 – September 7 – Elul 17

PROVING OF THE HEART
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Proving/proving.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 18 – September 8 – Elul 18

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 19 – September 9 – Elul 19

CONFESSION AND REALITY
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Confession/confession.html

Shabbat – no observance of the Shofar

Day 20 – September 10 – Elul 20

BEING HONEST WITH OURSELVES
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Self-Honesty/self-honesty.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 21 – September 11 – Elul 21

HASHIVENU – TURNING BACK TO THE LORD
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Meditations/Hashivenu/hashivenu.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 22 – September 12 – Elul 22

A PARABLE FOR ELUL
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Parable/parable.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 23 – September 13 – Elul 23

CHESHBON HA NEFESH – COURAGE FOR SELF-EXAMINATION
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Cheshbon/cheshbon.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 24 – September 14 – Elul 24

BIRTHPANGS OF THE MESSIAH
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Articles/Birthpangs/birthpangs.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 25 – September 15 – Elul 25

TEN DAYS OF AWE
ROSH HASHANAH AND THE DAY OF JUDGMENT

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Days_of_Awe/days_of_awe.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 26 – September 16 – Elul 26

THE FALL MO’EDIM – TESHUVAH AND REDEMPTION

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/fall_holidays.html

Shabbat – no observance of the Shofar

Day 27 – September 17 – Elul 27

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 28 – September 18 – Elul 28

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 29 – September 19 – Elul 29

ROSH HASHANAH AND ITS LINK TO THE BRIDE OF CHRIST

http://watchmansview.com/Commentary_-_Rosh_HaShanah_and_its_Link_to_The_Bride_of_Christ.html

http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Blessings/Blessing_Cards/shof2.mp3

Day 30 – September 20 – Elul 30

CONSIDER (Again) THE AWESOME SIGNS, WONDERS & INSIGHTS OF 2015
http://watchmansview.com/Signs_%26_Wonders_of_GOD.html

Could this unprecedented and incredible convergence of signs be pointing to some other time, year or age? ...or like the Psalmist states “Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard.  Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”  Psalm 19:1–4 ...”let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and years” Genesis 1:14 ...so we would know and understand God’s appointed times (Psalm 8:3).

Day 1 Days of Awe - Rosh Hashanah – September 14 - Elul 30 - Tishri 1 delayed 1-day this year as no official moon sighting in Jerusalem this year [Note: not sure how to count the days of Awe now - check back for clarification if the Harpazo has not take place]

TEN DAYS OF AWE - Rosh Hashanah and the Day of Judgement
http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Elul/Days_of_Awe/days_of_awe.html

Beginning of the Hebrew Civil New Year and New Sabbatical year
The end of the Shmitah prophetic cycle and a Solar Partial Eclipse (separating the light from darkness)
The end of a Jubilee cycle
The end of 6000 years from creation on the Torah Calendar - God told Noah in Genesis 6:3 that after 120 Jubilee Years, or 6000 years, He would no
     longer strive with man. At the end of the sixth millennium Yahweh the Messiah will grant the gift of eternal life
(Note: Rosh Hashanah officially begins Jerusalem time at sundown 6:48 PM on Elul 29/Tishti 1 – begins Sept 13 at 11:48 AM EDT)

Rosh Hashanah is known by the following Names, Themes, and Idioms

  1.     Teshuvah (repentance)

  2.     Rosh HaShanah (Head of the Year, Birthday of the  World)

  3.     Yom Teruah (the Day of the Awakening Blast - Feast of Trumpets)

  4.     Yom HaDin (the Day of Judgment)

  5.     HaMelech (the Coronation of the Messiah)

  6.     Yom HaZikkaron (the Day of Remembrance or memorial)

  7.     The time of Jacob's (Ya'akov) trouble (the birthpangs of the Messiah, Chevlai shel Mashiach)

  8.     The opening of the gates

  9.     Kiddushin/Nesu'in (the wedding ceremony)

10.    The resurrection of the dead (rapture, natza1)

11. 11.   The last trump (shofar)
    

12. 12.   Yom Hakeseh (the hidden day)
    
    

“Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. Now five of them were wise, and five were foolish. Those who were foolish took their lamps and took no oil with them, but the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. But while the bridegroom was delayed, they all slumbered and slept.  “And at midnight a cry was heard: ‘Behold, the bridegroom is coming;[a] go out to meet him!’ Then all those virgins arose and trimmed their lamps. And the foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise answered, saying, ‘No, lest there should not be enough for us and you; but go rather to those who sell, and buy for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went in with him to the wedding; and the door was shut.  “Afterward the other virgins came also, saying, ‘Lord, Lord, open to us!’ But he answered and said, ‘Assuredly, I say to you, I do not know you.’  “Watch therefore, for you know neither the [which] day nor the [which] hour in which the Son of Man is coming”  Matthew 25: 1-13

Day 2 Days of Awe – September 21 – Tishri 1

1.  Understanding Yom Kippur, The Day of Atonement http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/yom_kippur.html

Day 3 Days of Awe – September 22 – Tishri 2

2.  Yom Kippur and Chesed http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/Chesed/chesed.html

Day 4 Days of Awe – September 23 – Tishri 3

3.  Yom Kippur and The Power of Mercy http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/Power/power.html

Day 5 Days of Awe – September 24 – Tishri 4

4.  Yom Kippur and the Divine Name http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/Divine_Name/divine_name.html

Day 6 Days of Awe – September 25 – Tishri 5

5.  Yom Kippur and the Gospel http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/Gospel/gospel.html

Day 7 Days of Awe – September 26 – Tishri 6

6.  The Purim – Yom Kippur Connection http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Winter_Holidays/Purim/Yom_Kippur/yom_kippur.html

Day 8 Days of Awe – September 27 – Tishri 7

7.  Yom Kippur and Prophecy http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/Prophecy/prophecy.html

Day 9 Days of Awe – September 28 – Tishri 8

8.  Yom Kippur and the Resurrection of Yeshua http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/Yoma/yoma.html

Day 10 Days of Awe – September 29 – Tishri 9

9.   Yom Kippur and the Messiah http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/Messiah/messiah.html

10.  Al Chet – Yom Kippur Confession http://www.hebrew4christians.com/Holidays/Fall_Holidays/Yom_Kippur/Al_Chet/al_chet.html