Note: I shared this message at my church this morning and am sharing it here as well.

Scripture: Exodus 12:1-2

12 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, ² “This month is to be for you the first month, the first month of your year.

May the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing to you, O God.

Today March 30, 2025, is Nisan 1. This is the first month of God’s year according to Exodus 12:1-2.

So, Happy New Year!

Now, don’t throw away the calendar on your wall. It is still good. But we might entertain a little trivia. If you decide to celebrate the moment God’s new year begins, it starts at twilight, not at midnight. Think of all the sleep you can save by not having to stay up ‘til 12:00.

I believe some valuable insights can be gained by taking a closer look at the significance of God’s design of a new year.

The name Nisan is a word that means new beginnings. Nisan happens in spring when all nature wakes up from its long winter nap. Flowers bud and bloom beginning the next season of seeds, berries, and harvest for man and animals alike.

With all the freshness, renewed feelings of hope spring up. Farmers and gardeners are planting seeds. Bluebirds have built a nest in our birdhouse. Our apple trees are in full bloom and bees are buzzing in our holly bushes. Baby lambs are being born.

There are many kinds of new beginnings in life, not all happen in Nisan, but some do. I am expecting a new beginning – looking for a new-to-me car. (grin) Perhaps you are beginning or hoping for something new in your life. Springtime does seem like a much better time to start a New Year’s resolution than in the middle of the winter. And it just might carry some of God’s blessings with it.

God has blessed the month of Nisan over the centuries in many ways.

The Jewish Talmud claims that God created the earth in the month of Nisan. That is impossible to prove in the minds of most people, but I see one way in which it truly stands to reason. What other season of year would be more appropriate for God to create life than in the spring? If all life were created in the spring everything would have the maximum number of weeks and months available to multiply and grow before the cold winter months came.

The Talmud had a few other claims for the month of Nisan that I will mention. These dates are not included in our Scriptures, and I do not know their reasoning or record keeping methods. So, I include them only as possibilities, not facts.

Jewish Talmud claims the following events took place in the month of Nisan:

• God made his covenant with Abraham.
• Isaac was born.
• Jacob wrestled with an angel all night before meeting up with his estranged brother Esau.
• God appeared to Moses in the burning bush.
• Daniel was thrown into the lion’s den.

The most significant events for Christians are the parallels between the Nisan of Exodus and the Nisan of the Gospels. Both were new beginnings, and the first was a foretaste of the second.

From Exodus 12 we learn that the Israelite families had to select a perfect lamb on the tenth day of Nisan and care for it in their homes. At twilight, the beginning of the fourteenth day they were to slaughter those precious lambs who had been in their homes 5 days, roast and eat it in haste as part of a special meal. With the blood of the lamb over the door frame and on each door post, the Israelite homes were passed over by the death angel. But at midnight the death angel struck down the firstborn in every Egyptian home. On the fifteenth day the Israelites gained their freedom as they hastily left Egypt.

God commanded the Jewish people to celebrate the Passover every year to commemorate the miraculous events that he had performed on their behalf. God also commanded the sacrifice of animals to pay for their sins. These sacrifices had to be repeated over and over as the people continued to sin.

From the Gospels we learn that on the tenth day of Nisan Christ was praised and celebrated royally as he entered Jerusalem on a donkey. Christ is our Sacrificial Lamb. He was crucified on the fourteenth day of Nisan, the day of Passover. His blood sacrifice offers new life and freedom available to all, Jew and Gentile alike. Jesus’ sacrifice does not have to be repeated over and over, it was a one-time sacrifice, once for all. Christ died that we might live! His resurrection is all the proof we need to know that he is God.

What a glorious new beginning Christ offers! He freely offers his salvation to all people who are willing to accept him as Lord and Savior.

I want to share some additional events we know about from Scripture, events that happened in Nison the month of new beginnings.

• On Nisan 1, one year after the Israelites left Egypt, the Tabernacle was first erected. The Tabernacle was God’s house as he accompanied the Israelites through their 40 years in the desert and into the Promised Land.
• Forty years later Joshua led the Israelites through the Jordan River on dry land as God parted the waters on the tenth day of Nisan.
• Centuries later, the Israelites who had been held in captivity in Babylon began to return to Israel in the month of Nisan.
• In the month of Nisan Queen Esther fasted three days along with all the Jews in her city, before she risked her own life to approach King Xerxes. Those three days overlapped the beginning of the Jewish Passover. Because of Queen Esther’s courage and God’s favor, she was able to carry out her task to save the Jews from annihilation by Haman’s wicked decree.

There is one additional event I want to share about the month of Nisan. There is a distinct possibility that the birth of Christ Jesus happened in Nisan.

Christian Rabbi, Jonathan Cahn, has diligently studied and cross-examined the Scriptures along with other historical documents from ancient times. He has uncovered numerous valid reasons to believe that Christ was born on Nisan 1.

The first and most obvious key to his claim is that lambs are born only in the spring. That was the time of year when shepherds were out in the fields watching their flocks at night — watching for and protecting the perfect newborn lambs. These most valuable lambs would be needed two years later as sacrifices for Passover in Jerusalem. This is only one of Jonathan Cahn’s many findings that support his claim. There is not enough time to elaborate on more of his reasons in today’s message. Jonathan Cahn was interviewed ten years ago in a video that is available on YouTube. In this interview he shares multiple supporting facts he found through his research. for anyone who would like to listen to it, I will add a link to his interview in the comments section of today’s worship service on our church Facebook page when I get home today. (For this post, I have included it at the bottom of the post.)

So now, in addition to saying Happy New Year, I want to add “Have a blessed Nativity Day” – free from all the hullabaloo of Santa Claus and Christmas shopping.

I am convinced God has good reasons for arranging events to fall on special dates. We can see that there are too many significant events in Nisan to write them all off as chance. Could this be God’s way of emphasizing his command over time and events and over the entire universe? God is God, and he intends to be taken seriously. He reveals himself in many ways to get our attention.

I would like to challenge you to ponder any new beginnings that God might be prompting in you. It is truly a good time for new directions, actions or changes that might lead you or someone you know closer to Christ. History has shown that God has blessed the month of Nisan with favor and with miracles. And we continue to see God’s hand at work in new and magnificent ways. We worship a God who is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. His miracles have not stopped. Put your hope in the Lord and trust he will enable you to accomplish any task he asks of you.

Let us pray:

Father God, thank you for your generous gift of new beginnings. Thank you for Christ who helped you create this amazing world we live in. And more than that, thank you for your great big heart that loved us so much you were willing to send him to live with us and suffer at our hands to give us new life – a new beginning. Help us to not waste this precious gift. Give us your wisdom and insights that we may follow your leading wholeheartedly. Bless this month of Nisan that we may feel your enriching power and encouragement for the days ahead. Amen

Jonathan Cahn’s interview about when Christ Jesus was born:
https://youtu.be/ptlsXtTf6n0?si=RPsIJ086RXM5Cw_j

Image thanks to Arno Smit on Unsplash

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