Readers Question / Comment -
The Lord’s eight holy appointed times, or feasts are primarily for individuals to feed on (John 6:54) to see their need for salvation and how to be re-generated (2 Cor 5). The New Covenant tells us that even the first covenant had regulations of divine worship (Heb 9:1).
Jesus Christ came to save sinners.
The holy scriptures give us the true STEPS TO CHRIST. They walk us through the spiritual attitude changes we must have to truly see Jesus Christ as our deliverer, Savior, and kinsman-Redeemer, and propitiation offering to appease God’s wrath against sin - transgression of the law. Some only see the feasts as a calendar for Jesus’ return to earth.
If we are to keep the Lord’s festivals in heaven - why aren’t churches teaching to rehearse them now (Zech 14)?
Yours In Christ,
Richard.
JPN Reply:
Hi Richard,
thanks for the email. Just in reply to your question and scriptures used it is worth noting the following:
John 6:54 - This scripture is about feeding on Christ, which, it's it context, relates to believing on Him (see John 6:31-36) . It is not about participating in feast days. Jesus was talking to people who religiously kept the feast days every year and this didn't help them because they did not believe. So I don't know why you are using this scripture to say we should keep the feasts.
2 Cor 5 - Talks about our reconciliation with God but nothing about the feast days playing a part in that.
Zech 14 - There is nothing in this chapter about heaven. It is an earthly scene at the return of Jesus and his coming rule on earth from Jerusalem.
If people today want to keep the feasts today they can but there are warnings in the New Testament against people that to start placing them on a level where one sees them as essential to salvation or as making the believer more spiritual (when they are just shadows, not the actual reality in Christ). it is important that we focus on the reality, not the shadows. In my study I have written the following:
Are believers in Christ told to keep the feasts today?
This is also an interesting question. The church is not under any law to outwardly keep the feasts as the nation of Israel was told to do. In fact there are verses of warning when believers go back under these and other aspects of the law in an attempt to win favour and righteousness with God. This is what the Galatian church tried to do and note Paul’s concern and disappointment with them:
Galatians 4:9-11 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you turn back again to the weak and worthless elemental things, to which you desire to be enslaved all over again? (10) You observe days and months and seasons and years. (11) I fear for you, that perhaps I have labored over you in vain.
To those at Colossae Paul wrote:
Colossians 2:16-17 Therefore do not let anyone judge you by what you eat or drink, or with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or a Sabbath day. (17) These are a shadow of the things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.
So we are not under any legal obligation to keep the feasts (festivals) because they were a shadow of the reality that is in Christ. But as ‘shadows’ or ‘types’ we can certainly learn from them for God has hidden many important truths within them. It should also be noted that there is a spiritual way in which we still keep these feasts and this spiritual / personal aspect will also be explored as we continue with our studies. It was this spiritual (not natural / outward) aspect that Paul spoke about when he wrote:
1 Corinthians 5:7-8 Clean out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact unleavened. For Christ our Passover also has been sacrificed. (8) Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
All the best,
Iain.