Got Oil?
"And five of them were wise, and five foolish. Those who were foolish, having taken their lamps, took NO OIL with them" ~Matthew 25:2, 3
"And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Messiah, this one is not His." ~Romans 8:9B
"And later the other virgins also came saying, 'Master, Master, open up for us!' "But he answering, said, 'Truly, I say to you, I do not know you.' ~Matthew 25:11,12

"And if the Spirit of Him who raised יהושע from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Messiah from the dead shall also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit dwelling in you. So then, brothers, we are not debtors to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh, you are going to die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you shall live." ~Romans 8:11-13

“And Elohim said, “Let lights come to be in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and appointed times, and for days and years, and let them be for lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth.” And it came to be so. And Elohim made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night, and the stars.  And Elohim set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And Elohim saw that it was good. And there came to be evening and there came to be morning, the fourth day.” ~Genesis 1:14-19

What word grabs your attention in Genesis 1:14-19?
Yes, you got it: LIGHT!
It is important to understand that the Creator put the LIGHTS
in the expanse of the heavens for:
1. Signs
2. Appointed Times
3. Days
4. Years
Obviously Signs are meant to be Seen!
The Greater Light (sun) governs the day.
The Lesser Light (moon) governs the night.

"To Him who made great lights,
For His kindness is everlasting;
The sun to rule by day,
For His kindness is everlasting;
The moon and stars to rule by night,
For His kindness is everlasting." ~Psalm 136:7-9

The Appointed Times refer to the Creator’s Calendar. (Leviticus 23)
In many ways the sun and moon are like the 2 hands on clock determining the timing of different events on His Calendar.
One of those scheduled events are the New Moons!

“And in the day of your gladness, and in your appointed times, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over your peace offerings. And they shall be a remembrance for you before your Elohim. I am יהוה your Elohim.” ~Numbers 10:10
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To better understand New Moons we should look closer at a few words that are in association with it.

First off, the Hebrew word for moon is yarach ירח Strong’s #H3394 and is used about 26 times and is the literal word for moon, but it can also refer to a “month” as well.
The Hebrew expression for New Moon or the Head of the Month is Rosh Chodesh or Rosh Chodeshim if referring to the Head of Month(s).  As is the case in Exodus 12:1, 2:

“And יהוה spoke to Mosheh and to Aharon in the land of Mitsrayim, saying,“This month (Chodesh) is the beginning of months (Rosh Chodeshim) for you, it is the first month (Chodesh) of the year for you.” ~Exodus 12:1, 2

Rosh is Strong #H7218 ראש = head, chief, top, or beginning
It is also interesting to look at the meaning of each Hebrew letter that makes up Rosh:
ר = head
א = ox, strength, first
ש = teeth, fire (the shin literally look like “teeth of fire”)
We can also see the word “ash” אש which means “fire” contained within the word Rosh ראש.
We can see from the word Rosh that it could be represented as the:
Head – First – Fire, or the Beginning of Fire (fire obliviously produces light)
Chodesh Strongs #H2320 חדש = Month, New Moon 
Chodesh comes from the root Chadash Strong’s #H2318 חדש = Renew, Repair, Refresh
Check out how the Lexicon describes Chadash:
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Many are unaware that the moon is the faithful witness in the sky that points to something much greater than often perceived:

“I will not violate My covenant, nor alter the word that has gone out of My lips. Once I have sworn by My set-apart-ness, I will not lie to David: His seed shall endure throughout the ages, and his throne as the sun before Me. It shall be established throughout the ages like the moon, like the faithful witness in the sky. Selah.” ~Psalms 89:34-37

The New Moon literally points to the GOOD NEWS!
The moon witnesses to the birth, death, and resurrection of יהושע Messiah!
(More on this later)
There is a LOT of historical information on the “sighting of the New Moon”, for the sake of time I’ll just list a few clickable links below:
1. The Temple Institute
2. The Sanhedrin Committee
3. Book of Enoch “And on the first day she is called the new moon, for on that day the light rises upon her.”

Also Philo who was a prominent Jewish leader who lived in Alexandria from about 20 B.C.E. to about 50 C.E. and was a contemporary of both יהושע the Messiah and Paul.  In his Treatise on the Special Laws, Book II, XI (41), Philo discusses the Scriptural observances. Note how he describes the new moon:

“[It] is that which comes after the conjunction, which… [is] the day of the new moon in each month.” In his detailed discussion of the new moon, Philo describes what constitutes a new moon: “…at the time of the new moon, the sun begins to illuminate the moon with a light which is visible to the outward senses, and then she displays her own beauty to the beholders.”

Determining the Hebrew Month
A Hebrew Month begins at the moment of sunset the evening the moon’s crescent first becomes potentially visible to the naked eye in Jerusalem, assuming ideal sighting conditions without smog, haze or clouds.

A great “tool” for determining Hebrew Months past, present, and future can be found by clicking on the picture below:
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