Bible Study Course Lesson 12: God's Festivals—Keys to Humanity's Future

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Humanity has been deprived of the keys that unlock a comprehensive understanding of God's plan and purpose for humankind. God reveals His splendid plan in the prophecies and teachings of the Scriptures. In this lesson you will see how God has provided us with the keys to unlock His plan through His sacred festivals.

The festivals foreshadow and reveal the basics of God's plan of salvation.

God's plan for the redemption of mankind begins with Christ's sacrifice for our sins.

The Feast of Unleavened Bread celebrates Christians being miraculously delivered from the spiritual bondage of sin and reminds us that our deliverance from sin and our salvation are available only through a personal relationship with Christ.

Pentecost represents God using His Church—those who are converted, revitalized and transformed by His Spirit—to do His work in this current age of Satan's spiritual dominance over humankind.

The Feast of Trumpets represents that pivotal time in God's plan when He will bring this present evil age to an end and establish His rule and government over humanity.

The Day of Atonement, as a Christian festival, reminds us that the atoning sacrifice of Christ is not only for individual Christians in this age but for the forgiveness and reconciliation of all people.

The joyful Feast of Ingathering (Feast of Tabernacles) represents the time during which God will gather the great harvest of humanity into His family.

The book of Revelation reveals that all people who have ever died without hearing of Christ or learning God's way of life are to be resurrected and given their opportunity to receive eternal life. This brings us to the concluding aspects of God's plan.

Why was I born? Is there a reason for my existence? Is this present life, with its hardships and suffering, all there is? People have long tried to answer these questions through their own reasoning, seldom realizing that God has already revealed the answers though His Word and through His festivals.

Calendar of God's Holy Days

Why do most people keep holidays that are different from the festivals listed and described in the pages of the Bible?

What is the connection between sacrifices and God's festivals?

The passage in Colossians 2:16, probably more than any other in the Bible, is interpreted by those who reject God's festivals as confirmation that the biblical feast days are unnecessary observances.

Through these festivals God, through His written Word, regularly reminds us of His awesome and loving plan for humanity.

We hope this is only your beginning of a thorough and continuing study of God's Word.

These questions are intended as a study aid, to spur further thought on the concepts discussed in this lesson and to help you apply them on a personal level.

Test your knowledge from what you learned in Lesson 12 - God's Festivals: Keys to Humanity's Future