A Guide to the Christian Observance of the Biblical Sabbath, Feasts, and Holy Days
For a general introduction to the biblical Feasts and Holy Days, see the article Theme Times elsewhere on this Times of Refreshing website. This webpage builds on concepts explained in that article. If you are not familiar with the cycle of these Feasts and Holy Days, you may find t helpful to read that article first.
What do you see in this picture?
Sometimes reading and understanding the importance of parts of the Bible, particularly in the Old Testament, can be much like looking at a jumble of lines in a child’s puzzle picture and trying to discern anything recognizable. The picture above really does include outlines of something familiar. But the busy-ness of all the extra lines tends to obscure just what is being depicted.
As a variety of Christian teachers have phrased it over the years, “The New Testament sometimes reveals what the Old Testament conceals.” In other words, there are teachings in the New Testament that clarify what may have only appeared to be vague hints and obscure references in the Old Testament.
The reality is that the life, ministry, death, resurrection, and Second Coming of Jesus, as well as the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on His disciples fifty days after His resurrection, were all “foreshadowed” in numerous places in the Old Testament. And many of these foreshadowings have to do with the biblical Feasts and Holy Days of God, introduced in the Old Testament, as they come in their seasons.
And thus if you look closely, you can see Jesus—the Lamb of God—in all of them.
Sometimes reading and understanding the importance of parts of the Bible, particularly in the Old Testament, can be much like looking at a jumble of lines in a child’s puzzle picture and trying to discern anything recognizable. The picture above really does include outlines of something familiar. But the busy-
As a variety of Christian teachers have phrased it over the years, “The New Testament sometimes reveals what the Old Testament conceals.” In other words, there are teachings in the New Testament that clarify what may have only appeared to be vague hints and obscure references in the Old Testament.
The reality is that the life, ministry, death, resurrection, and Second Coming of Jesus, as well as the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on His disciples fifty days after His resurrection, were all “foreshadowed” in numerous places in the Old Testament. And many of these foreshadowings have to do with the biblical Feasts and Holy Days of God, introduced in the Old Testament, as they come in their seasons.
And thus if you look closely, you can see Jesus—the Lamb of God—in all of them.
Many people who accept Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, whether they refer to themselves as "Christian" or "Messianic," observe the biblical Feasts and Holy Days as times of worship, fellowship, and celebration. They believe that these observances, described in Leviticus 23 and Deuteronomy 16, reveal much about the plan of salvation available through the death and resurrection of Jesus. As Paul says in the New Testament, they are shadows pointing to the reality of Jesus. (To read more about this analogy, see “What are Shadows and Foreshadows?”) Those Christians who observe can celebrate them believe that there are valuable spiritual lessons to be learned year by year through actually physically setting aside these Times of Refreshing as "appointments with God."
Explore the articles on this website to see
what is revealed in the scriptures about these appointments
that may have been concealed from your understanding in the past.
what is revealed in the scriptures about these appointments
that may have been concealed from your understanding in the past.
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All of the articles on this website are available in simple and convenient pdf format files that you can print out and share with friends. Go to the Easy Printing Page for details.
Concealing and Revealing