God’s Holy Days

Thank you, Mr. Sweat. Good afternoon. Happy Sabbath. Nice to see all of you here today. I do apologize for the scruffy appearance to some degree, but my wife's gone. So I get to grow a beard. She doesn't really like beards. She likes to look, but she doesn't like to feel. So since she's not here for a while, I'll probably let this grow for a while.

I appreciated the sermonette. Also, Mr. Benedict appreciated him leading songs. I was a little concerned when he started talking about already making mistakes in his marriage. And then I was relieved when he said he was sitting and not sleeping on the couch.

I don't know if you caught that or not, but... So that was good. Now, Mr. Wright was actually scheduled to speak today, but he got a hold of me about two days ago and said he had an allergic reaction to his blood pressure medication. In fact, when he went into the ER, they knew immediately what the problem was, because his face was swollen, his lips... the right side of his face, I think it was the lip and the upper lip and the jaw was swollen.

I guess this is rather common. He's taken this medication for a long time, but once you develop an allergic reaction, you can't take it any longer. So he's doing much better now. The swelling's gone down, and hopefully he'll be up and around and feeling great here in a day or two. But he's still having some effects from that, so I know he'd appreciate your prayers for his recovery on that.

I'm sure they'll put him on a different type of medication. Hopefully he'll do well with this one. I guess he had done quite well for many years on the other one, but sometimes those reactions develop. By the way, if anyone would like a shawl, if you're cold, I think it feels great. You know, up here it's nice to have a little cooler in here, but if anyone would like a shawl to drape over their shoulders, we have some of the JCC provides these for people who are cold because of the air conditioning. So please raise your hands.

Don't be bashful. If you'd like a shawl, there are a few in the back that will be brought to you. All right. All right, well, brethren, we're now less than two months away from the beginning of the fall Holy Day season.

Of course, the Feast of Trumpets will begin the season, and we're just three full moons away from the beginning of the Feast of Tabernacles. That's just a bit more than two months, but there will be three full moons if I calculated correctly. And the Feast of Tabernacles begins on a very, very important date this year, October the 8th. That is my wife and my 36th wedding anniversary. So it'll be nice to see the full moon and celebrate our anniversary that evening, the beginning of the Feast of Tabernacles.

And as quickly as time goes by, these fall Holy Days will be upon us. Now, we routinely refer to these days as holy. Brethren, what does it mean for these days to be holy, and are they indeed still holy today? Why do we continue to keep what some people consider old Jewish days?

Will these days be observed during the millennium, and should we really be keeping them today? And what value is there in keeping these holy days? So today we're going to go through a doctrinal sermon. There will be quite a few scriptures. So please follow along with me as we go through the scriptures, because frankly, you should be able to do this yourself. So if you already can, that's great. If you're not quite up to it, this will be a good reminder of many scriptures in the Bible that truly do show that these days are holy, that these days should be observed. And not only that, I'd like us to start catching a little bit of feast fever.

It's not too early to start thinking about the Feast of Tabernacles. Of course, the other holy days as well, but the Feast of Tabernacles is a bit special, the last great day. Because we all basically leave our homes, we go stay in temporary dwellings, and we get to have eight days together. So the Feast of Tabernacles is very special in that regard. And of course, the last great day at the end of the feast. So, you know, in America today, we observe a number of holidays. And you know, it's easy to see that the word holiday is closely related to the two words I've mentioned a few times already.

Holy days. Now, according to an etymology expert, Carol Pozefsky, she says that holiday is a compound word stemming from the words holy and day. So I'm not just making that up. That's where the word comes from. That's common sense would tell us that. The word holiday first surfaced in the 1500s, replacing the earlier word holiday, H-A-L-I-D-A-Y, which was recorded before 1200 in the Old English book, Encrené Ríri, which I've never heard of that, but don't know anything about it. She says earlier, about 1950, the word was haligdaeig, H-A-L-I-G-D-A-E-G, and appeared in the Old English linds farm gospels. It was a compound of halig, which means holy, and dayig, D-A-E-G, which means day.

So in America, some of our holidays, what we would refer to as holidays, are Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, and Halloween. Now, the origins and history of these days actually revealed days that originated from fear, from superstition, and from celebrations of pagans. People who were not Christians, people who did not believe in the true God, or the Son of God. They clearly do not have godly origins these days. I don't really like to call them holidays, because there's nothing holy about those days. In a very real sense, we could say these days are Satan's counterfeits of the true holy days of God Almighty, because they were established not by God's inspiration, but by the inspiration of the God of this world, by Satan the Devil.

Now, every nation also observes patriotic days. These special days are reminders of a nation's history. They mark certain important events. Now, in America, some of those days, we all know what they are. It's our Presidents' Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, or the Fourth of July, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day. Now, these are patriotic days.

They mark the history of our country to certain degrees. And really, there's nothing wrong in observing these days and making note of those days. But these other days, as I mentioned, Christmas, Easter, Valentine's Day, New Year's Day, Halloween, these days are pagan days. They're unholy. They're not holy days. Now, those of us who have been in the Church of God are also used to observing these holy days, true holy days of God. Now, we obviously have some reasons for keeping these days.

They are very, very important to us, and well, they should be. Now, we find the origins of these days in the Bible. The Bible and the Revelation and the inspiration of the Holy Spirit gives us clear reasons for why we keep these days today. And by actually observing these days, we come to understand God's plan of salvation for mankind. We understand it more fully and more completely because we do observe God's holy days. Now, these biblical holy days are festivals. They fall during three seasons of the year, as we read about in Deuteronomy 16.

The early spring harvest, the days of the leavened bread, of course, the Passover included among that time, the late spring harvest, or Pentecost, and the early autumn and later autumn harvest that take place in Israel. Now, the themes these days portray, they reflect God's spiritual harvest of mankind to eternal life that is spoken of by our Savior Jesus Christ. Let's go to John 4 and read what Christ says in regard to these days. John 4. He talks about a time of harvest here. John 4, verse 34.

John 4, verse 34. Jesus said to His disciples, My food is to do the will of Him who sent me, speaking of the Father, and to finish His work. Do you not say, There are still four months, and then comes the harvest? Behold, I say to you, lift up your eyes and look at the fields, for they are already white for harvest. He's talking about a spiritual harvest. He who reaps receives wages and gathers fruit for eternal life, that both he who sows and he who reaps may rejoice together. For in this the saying is true, one sows and another reaps.

I sent you to reap that for which you have not labored, others have labored, and you have entered into their labors. We are continuing to labor in regard to this harvest today. We are continuing to do our best to preach the gospel of the kingdom of God to this world, to talk about the first fruits whom God is calling, to help prepare them for the return of Jesus Christ, and to help others who are wanting to know God's truth. So the fields are certainly white for harvest, a spiritual harvest. By observing God's Holy Days, we see His plan for mortal man, how that mortal man may one day attain immortality and live forever.

Christ preached the gospel of the kingdom of God, a kingdom that would last forever and ever and ever. God's Holy Days revealed the good news of God's coming kingdom. In Matthew 25, it speaks about inheriting the kingdom of God. So let's go there. Let's read this together in Matthew 25. Now this is a very interesting chapter, of course. It talks about the parable of the wise and the foolish versions, also the parable of the talents. In verse 31, it says, And then the king will say to those on his right hand, That's right.

God has a master plan that stems from the very foundations of the world. God knows what He's doing. He is preparing a people who will rule with His Son for a thousand years here on the earth. And then the kingdom of God will be expanded for all eternity from then on. We are now preparing for this wonderful kingdom. Now God's Autumn Holy Days revealed that Christ is returning to this earth. The Feast of Trumpets clearly pictures the return of Christ. The Day of Atonement pictures that Satan will be bound. It also pictures that we will become at one with God, that we will have that relationship with God, that God will be our God and we will be His children.

And then, of course, the Feast of Tabernacles pictures God's kingdom here on the earth for a thousand years. Again, Christ will be the king of that kingdom and the firstfruits will rule and reign with Him. And then after those thousand years of godly rule with Christ on the throne, the Great White Throne Judgment Period will take place. And all mankind will finally have an opportunity to know God and His truth. Then the New Jerusalem will come down from heaven and God the Father will then dwell among us. He will be our God and we will be His people and we will live forever with Him. We shall be free at last. Now, I remember back in early 1995, a certain minister came to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and he talked about being free at last. Free from that old slave law. Of course, that was very offensive to me. And to others, many of you, of course, would have been offended by that. We are not free from God's holy law. But when Christ returns and His kingdom is established and we are changed into spirit, and we become like Christ, we will be free from corruption, we will be free from dishonor, we will be free from weakness, we will be free from Satan the oppressor, and we will be free from this corruptible flesh. We will be free once and for all from sin. I'm looking forward to that day, very much. Let's go to Revelation 21, where we read about the New Jerusalem. When we read about a wonderful time to come. Revelation 21, verse 1, Now I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also, there was no more sea. And I saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

And I heard a loud voice from heaven, saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them, and He will be their God, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. And there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away. Now I know we all look forward to that time with great anticipation. We long for those days. We long for the return of Christ. We long for the establishment of God's government and kingdom. We long for the New Jerusalem. These days that we're going to observe, the days that we've already observed, the spring Holy Days, and the days that we are going to be observing in the fall, they picture this wonderful plan of salvation.

In Leviticus 23, there's a listing of all the Holy Days in one chapter, Leviticus 23. Of course, this is a very important chapter for that reason.

Notice what it says about these feasts. What does God call them? Verse 1, In the Eternal, the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them, The feasts of the Eternal. These are indeed God's feasts. They're not anyone else's feasts. They're not the Jews' feasts. God says, These are my feasts.

The feasts of the Eternal, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, These are my feasts. And notice where He begins.

He says, Six days shall work be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of solemn rest. It is a holy convocation, a commanded assembly. That's what convocation means. And you shall do no work on it. It is the Sabbath of the Eternal in all your dwellings. These are my feasts. So anyone who calls themselves the child of God should be observing these feasts. Because these are God's feasts. And they are for His children. And He begins with the Sabbath day. Now, it seems ironic to me, but for some reason, some people put a greater emphasis on the annual holy days than they do the weekly Sabbath. That's always puzzled me. It seems like nothing will keep them from keeping the annual feasts. But for some reason, the Sabbath doesn't seem as important.

That's not the way it ought to be. The Sabbath is extremely important. The Sabbath shows us who our Creator is. God is the one who sanctified this day that we're observing now. He is our Creator. He sanctified it at creation. And He called it a commanded assembly. And He wants us to keep it every Sabbath. He wants us to be here, if at all possible, if we're healthy. If we don't have some extenuating good family reason, we're to be here keeping God's feasts. We're to be here keeping the holy Sabbath day.

So these days are set apart for a divine, godly purpose. God wants us to be here so He can instruct us, so He can teach us. And so we can get to know each other and learn to love each other and learn to work out our problems, as Mr. Voltub was talking somewhat about in the sermonette. It's important to be here. God wants us to be here. So He begins with the Sabbath day. Now Israel strayed from keeping God's weekly Sabbath and also His annual Sabbath. And we're going to talk about that to a large extent here in a moment. But let's continue on here in Leviticus 23, verse 4. These are the feasts of the Lord. They're holy convocations, which you shall proclaim at their appointed times. On the 14th day of the first month at twilight is the eternal's Passover. And on the 15th day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread to the Lord. Seven days you must eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall have a holy convocation and you shall do no customary work on it. And you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord for seven days. And the seventh day shall be a holy convocation, a high day, and you shall do no customary work on it. And God goes on to say, speak to the children of Israel in verse 10, and say to them, When you come into the land which I give to you, and you reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the first fruits of your harvest to the priest. And he shall wave the sheaf before the eternal to be accepted on your behalf. On the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. Now we know that Christ, we know that actually this wave sheaf symbolizes Christ our Savior.

The day of Pentecost is a very important time, and this wave sheaf points to the day of Pentecost. Verse 15, You shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering, seven Sabbaths shall be completed. Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath. So Pentecost will always fall on a Sunday, according to this reckoning, and you shall offer a new grain offering to the Lord.

Dropping down to verse 23, Then the Eternal spoke to Moses, saying, Speak to the children of Israel, saying, in the seventh month, On the first day of the month you shall have a Sabbath rest, a memorial of blowing trumpets, a holy convocation, and you shall do no customary work on it. And you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Lord. And in verse 27, Also the tenth day of the seventh month shall be a day of atonement. It shall be a holy convocation for you, and you shall afflict your souls. Now this is a reference to fasting. No food, no water for the twenty-four hour period, from sunset to sunset. You shall afflict your souls. And you shall offer an offering made by fire to the Eternal. And you shall do no work on that same day, for it is the day of atonement to make atonement for you before the Lord your God. It's a very important time, and he says that those who don't observe it shall be cut off from the children of Israel, and cut off from their God in that regard. And then verse 33, Then the Eternal spoke to Moses, Speak to the children of Israel. The fifteenth day of the seventh month shall be the feast of tabernacles, for seven days to the Eternal. On the first day there shall be a holy convocation, another high day.

And then verse 39, Also on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered the fruit of the land, you shall keep the feast of the Lord for seven days. On the first day there shall be a Sabbath rest, and on the eighth day a Sabbath rest.

Verse 41, You shall keep it as a feast to the Lord for seven days in the year. It shall be a statute forever in your generations. You shall celebrate it in the seventh month. And you shall dwell in booths for seven days, and all who are native Israelites shall dwell in booths. Now when we go to keep the feasts of tabernacles, we're going to dwell in temporary dwellings. A booth is a temporary dwelling. Now I do prefer condos and those types of temporary dwellings over booths, but I would gladly keep the feast in a booth. I wouldn't have a problem with that, but I don't think God has a problem with us going and keeping the feast the way we do. I think it does, in a sense, also picture a very prosperous time to come during the reign of Jesus Christ here on the earth. So I know we appreciate going to the feast and observing these days in temporary dwellings. Now I'm not going to get to stay in the Bahamas. I'll be in the Bahamas this year. And I'm sure it's going to be a wonderful feast. I'm looking forward to it. But I am going to have to come back here. I don't get to stay. It's just a temporary dwelling. And I'll look forward to coming back in certain ways, but it'll be nice also to be there and to keep God's feast days. To observe them.

God says these are my feasts, and those who love God will keep his feasts. Now Israel strayed from keeping God's weekly Sabbath and his annual Sabbath. In fact, there's a chapter in the Old Testament that stands out above any other chapter. It talks about how idolatry and Sabbath-breaking were two of the main sins for which Israel went into captivity. So go ahead and turn there if you would. Go ahead. Hopefully you know where to turn. If you don't, go to Ezekiel 20. This is a very, very important chapter in regard to God's Sabbath days. His weekly Sabbath and his annual Sabbath. Ezekiel 20. If you didn't know where to go, then perhaps you still have a bit to learn. Things to remember in regard to God's Holy Days.

I know I have the upper hand because I'm giving the sermon. In Ezekiel 20, let's go there. But this chapter has made a big impact on me personally for many, many, many years. Back in 1995, I know I was reading this chapter quite a bit and contemplating it and considering it in regard to what was going on in the church at the time. Ezekiel 20.

God says in verse 12, Moreover, I also gave them my Sabbath to the children of Israel. I gave them my Sabbath to be a sign between them and me, that they might know that I am the Eternal who sanctifies them.

Yet the house of Israel rebelled against me in the wilderness. They did not walk in my statutes. They despised my judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them. And they greatly defiled my Sabbath. God was not pleased with the children of Israel because of the way they did not keep his Sabbath holy, the Sabbath days. They were there for forty years wandering in the wilderness. Then I said I would pour out my fury on them in the wilderness to consume them. But I acted for my name's sake, that it should not be profaned before the Gentiles and whose side I had brought them out.

So I also raised my hand in an oath to them in the wilderness, that I would not bring them into the land which I had given them, flowing with milk and honey. You know, they had gone in to spy out the land. But unfortunately, they had a bunch of weak men who did not yield to God and leaned to their own understanding. However, Joshua and Caleb were pointing them in the right direction, but they would not listen. They even wanted to stone Joshua and Caleb. God would have given them the land at that time if they had had the courage to go possess it.

Verse 16, again, this land flowing with milk and honey, the glory of all lands, they were not allowed to go in. Verse 16, because they despised my judgments and did not walk in my statutes, but they profaned my Sabbaths, for their heart went after their idols. Nevertheless, my eyes spared them from destruction. I did not make an end of them in the wilderness. And of course, Moses had intervened for them. But I said to their children in the wilderness, Do not walk in the statutes of your fathers, nor observe their judgments, nor defile yourselves with their idols. They brought the ways of Egypt with them. The idols of Egypt they continued to honor. And God was not pleased. I am the Eternal, your God. Walk in my statutes, keep my judgments, and do them. Hallow my Sabbaths, and they will be a sign between me and you that you may know that I am the Eternal, your God. Verse 21, Not withstanding the children rebelled against me. They did not walk in my statutes. They were not careful to observe my judgments. And by the way, brethren, it's interesting, in Genesis 26.5, it speaks of Abraham, and it says, Because Abraham obeyed my voice, kept my charge, my commandments, my statutes, and my laws. The Holy Days are statutes of God. I personally believe Abraham was keeping God's Holy Days long before the nation of Israel.

That he was obedient and faithful, and that's why he is the father of the faithful. He sets an example for us all. But others would not observe God's judgments, which if a man does, he shall live by them. In other words, there will be great blessings when we keep God's commandments, when we keep his statutes, and we keep his laws. Then I said I would pour out my fury on them, and I would fulfill my anger against them in the wilderness. Nevertheless, I withdrew my hand and acted for my name's sake. They were his children.

For my name's sake, that it should not be profaned in the sight of the Gentiles, and whose sight I had brought them out. Also, I raised my hand in an oath to those in the wilderness, that I would scatter them among the Gentiles and disperse them throughout the countries. Because they had not executed my judgments, but had despised my statutes, profaned my Sabbaths, and their eyes were fixed on their father's idols. Therefore, I gave them up to statutes that were not good. In other words, he allowed them to keep their own days and their own ways, and judgments by which they could not live. And I pronounced them unclean because of their ritual gifts, in that they caused all their firstborn to pass through the fire. They even did that. At times, they were even sacrificing their own children. They had corrupted themselves horribly, that I might make them desolate, and that they might know that I am the Eternal. Therefore, a son of man, speak to the house of Israel, and say to them, Thus does the Lord God, and this too your fathers have blasphemed me by being unfaithful to me. When we're unfaithful to God, we blaspheme Him. When we take Him for granted, we are in a sense blaspheming Him.

We are being unfaithful to Him. And we need to repent if we're being unfaithful.

Alright, let's drop down to verse 43 now. Well, we might notice verse 38. He says, I will purge the rebels from among you. Again, God doesn't like the rebels who rebel against Him and His ways. And those who transgress against Me, I will bring them out of the country where they dwell, but they shall not enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the Lord. Verse 43, and you know, He's talking about a time when He's going to show them His truth and His way.

A time when He will accept Him. Verse 40, He says, You see, that hasn't happened yet. That's the time to come in the future.

When God shakes this earth terribly and gets the attention of all people upon the face of the earth, then He will accept them as a sweet aroma, as it says in verse 41, when I bring you out from the peoples and gather you out of the countries where you've been scattered, and I will be hallowed in you before the Gentiles. So that's going to happen when Christ returns. Then you shall know that I am the Lord when I bring you into the land of Israel, into the country for which I raise my hand in an oath to give your fathers, and there you shall remember your ways and all your doings with which you were defiled. Sabbath-breaking. Idolatry. And you shall loathe yourselves in your own sight, because of all the evils that you have committed. There will come a time when people will repent on a huge scale, but there's going to be a lot of traumatic times before that happens. As I said, God is going to shake this earth, as He's really never done before. The time of Jacob's trouble. Then you shall know that I am the Eternal when I have dealt with you for my name's sake, not according to your wicked ways. God is going to forgive them. God is going to have mercy upon them. God is going to begin to convert them and bring them to Him in a very special way.

So they will come to loathe themselves for profaning God's Sabbaths and His Holy Days. Anyone who profanes God's Sabbaths should come to that point where they loathe themselves. Now, I remember at age 18, I began to loathe myself because I realized that I had broken God's Sabbath my whole life.

I had to repent of that. I had to change. I had to get on my knees and cry out to God to forgive me for breaking His Sabbath and for blaspheming Him, for committing idolatry, for keeping these pagan holidays.

I had to come out of that. I had to come out of Babylon. I had to be separate. I had to be different.

Now, let's ask this question. What about Christ and His example regarding the Sabbath? Now, we should realize that Christ was the God of the Old Testament.

Christ was the one that brought the commandments to the children of Israel. Christ was the one that inspired these words that we just read in Ezekiel, the one who became Christ, the Great I AM.

In Luke, chapter 2, 41, let's go to the New Testament. What about Christ and His example regarding the Sabbath?

Luke, chapter 2, verse 41. His parents went to Christ's parents. Verse 40, it talked about the child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was filled with wisdom. And the grace of God was upon him. And in verse 41, chapter 2 of Luke, His parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover. They were observant. They kept God's annual Holy Days. They kept the Sabbath. And, of course, He was keeping these days with Him. He went up with them at age 12. And you know the story. He astounded the rabbis of the day with what He understood and what He knew. He understood that He needed to be about His Father's business. Christ kept the Holy Days as a child. His parents kept the Holy Days. Let's go to John, chapter 2. We're going to go through a number of scriptures here showing that Christ did indeed observe the Sabbath. He was accused of breaking the Sabbath. Christ never broke the Sabbath. He's Lord of the Sabbath, the Master of the Sabbath. He's the one that sets the rules in regard to the Sabbath. That was blasphemy to say that about Christ. That He broke the Sabbath. John, chapter 2, verse 23. Now, when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover during the feast, many believed in His name when they saw the signs which He did. Christ was in Jerusalem observing the Passover. Of course, that Passover Lamb pointed to Him and His sacrifice.

In John, chapter 4, verse 45.

So when He came to Galilee, the Galileans received Him, having seen all the things that He did in Jerusalem at the feast, for they also had gone to the feast. He was keeping the Feast of Tabernacles. He was keeping all of God's Holy Days. In chapter 7, verse 1. And after these things, Jesus walked in Galilee, for He did not want to walk in Judea because the Jews sought to kill Him. Just like they tried to kill the prophets, they were out to kill the Son.

Now, the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand. It says the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles because they were basically the only ones keeping the feasts at that time. The others had been scattered, but there were some in Judea who were keeping the Feast of Tabernacles. But we already saw that these are God's feasts. So let's not be confused with that argument, that these are just Jewish days. These are my feasts as the Eternal. But Christ was there observing the Feast of Tabernacles.

Now, in verse 10. But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the Feast. Not openly, but as it were in secret. And then, of course, He did come a bit later there. He was observing the Feast and teaching during the Feast.

Verse 14. Now, about the middle of the Feast, Jesus went up into the Temple and He taught.

And then dropping down to verse 37. On the last day, that great day of the Feast, Jesus stood and cried aloud. He cried out, saying, If anyone thirst, let him come to me. Let him drink.

He who believes in me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living waters.

But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive. For the Holy Spirit was not yet given because Christ was not yet glorified. Christ was not... Christ hadn't been crucified. He hadn't been resurrected or glorified. The Spirit was to come later on Pentecost. It was poured out on the Feast of Pentecost.

Jesus kept these Holy Days as an adult. He kept them as a child. In 1 John 2, verse 6, He clearly says that He who says He abides in Him, He who abides in Christ, He who calls Himself a Christian, ought Himself also to walk, even as He walked. So all true Christians should keep these days.

These are God's Holy Days.

They should keep these days faithfully. Now what about the Sabbath after Christ's crucifixion? Or the annual Holy Days? Were they done away when Christ was nailed to the stake?

Were these days done away? Although admittedly difficult to understand at times, Paul's own explicit statements, the Apostles' Paul's own explicit statements and actions contradict any notion that he taught Gentiles that they ought not observe God's Holy Days. Let's go to 1 Corinthians 11, where Paul is speaking to the church at Corinth, primarily a Gentile church in Corinth, in Greece. 1 Corinthians 11, verse 1, he says, Imitate me just as I also imitate Christ. Follow me as I follow Christ is what he's saying.

He says, Now I praise you, brethren, that you remember me in all things, and you keep the traditions, the practices, just as I delivered them to you. He's talking about God's law, just as I delivered them to you, to this church at Corinth.

To many Gentiles here, undoubtedly there were some Jews as well, but there were many Gentiles that became a part of this church by this time.

So Paul taught them. Now, let's go to Acts 13. This is a very important verse to commit to memory. At least know where you can find it, because it's important, and we should be able to give an answer for why we do what we do. We shouldn't just say, go to the booklet. Go to the booklet. Yeah, we've got lots of booklets, and they're great. And we should go to the booklets, but sometimes people don't want to just here go to the booklets. They want to see you go to the Bible. So we all need to be able to go to the Bible. So in Acts 13, let's notice here in verse 42. Acts 13, verse 42. So when the Jews went out of the synagogue, of course it was the Sabbath, the Jews were there. The Gentiles here in this Gentile city, primarily Gentiles were here. The Jews came out of the synagogue. The Gentiles begged that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. Not the next day, not on Sunday, but the next Sabbath. If the Gentiles weren't supposed to keep the Sabbath, would this not have been a wonderful time to say, Hey, you don't need to keep the Sabbath. We can just meet here on Sunday. That's not what they were taught. They were taught to come back. Verse 43, now when the congregation had broken up, many of the Jews and devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. And on the next Sabbath, again, not on Sunday, but the next Sabbath, almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God.

So what reaction did the Jews have? Well, when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled with envy. Now, of course, these were not converted Jews. They were not true followers of Christ at all. They were filled with envy, and they contradicted and blasphemed, and they opposed the things that were spoken by Paul, who was indeed a true Christian, one who followed Christ. So Paul and Barnabas grew bold and said it was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first, to you Jews. But since you rejected and judged yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, behold, we turn to the Gentiles.

So God has called both Jews and Gentiles to obey Him and to follow Him and to keep His holy days, to keep His Sabbath, the weekly Sabbath and the annual Sabbath. That's an important chapter to know to go to when someone asks you about these days and why you observe them. In Acts 18, notice that Paul is certainly keeping the feasts himself. Some 20 or 30 years after Christ had been nailed to the stake, after he had been crucified and resurrected, Paul was not teaching them that the law was done away. He was telling them that the law is holy and just and good. And he was upholding Christ's words when Christ said, Think not that I came to destroy the law or the prophets. I did not come to destroy, but to fulfill these things, to keep them, to observe them, to set an example for all of you that you could follow.

I must by all means... Let's go back to Acts 18 here, verse 21. Paul took leave of them, saying, I must by all means keep this coming feast. Keep means to observe. He was to observe this coming feast in Jerusalem, but I will return again to you, God willing. And so he sailed there from Ephesus to go keep the feast in Jerusalem. Other scriptures. 1 Corinthians chapter 5. This is speaking of the days of the 11 bread here in 1 Corinthians chapter 5, and we're pretty familiar with these verses here. 1 Corinthians chapter 5 or 6. Paul says, Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened. For indeed, Christ our Passover was sacrificed for us. Therefore, let us keep the feast. Let us observe the feast. That's what this word means, to observe. Let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth. With the understanding that Christ, the unleavened bread that came down from heaven, now lives in us, and helps us grow and overcome and change and become like Him.

I must by all means keep these feasts. That's what we're taught. The days of unleavened bread were being observed after Christ died. Acts 20. Let's go back to Acts 20. Verse 6.

But we sailed away from Philippi after the days of unleavened bread. Again, inferring that they were keeping the days of unleavened bread, and after these days, they sailed, and in five days we joined them at Troas, where we stayed seven days. And then in verse 16, for Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus so that he would not have to spend time in Asia, for he was hurrying to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on the day of Pentecost. He wanted to be there to keep the feast of Pentecost. He wanted to be in Jerusalem to keep the feast. How clear does it have to be that these days were not done away? They were clearly being observed. I mean, this is a no-brainer. 1 Corinthians 16, verse 8. Paul says, But I will tarry in Ephesus until Pentecost. This was at a different time. He was going to stay with them in Ephesus until Pentecost. He was going to observe it there with the Ephesian church. And then in Acts, chapter 27, verse 9. So we've seen that Paul was keeping the days of 11 bread. The Gentiles were keeping the days of 11 bread. They were keeping Pentecost. They were keeping the Sabbath. Acts 27, verse 9. Now we see they were also observing the day of atonement. Acts 27, verse 9. Now when much time had been spent and sailing was now dangerous because the fast. What is he referring to here? He's obviously referring to the day of atonement when they would afflict their souls. We read that in Leviticus 23. The fast was already over. Paul advised them, saying, men I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster because this was the time of cyclones and windstorms and those kinds of problems. And even when we keep the Feast of Tabernacles these days, we have to sometimes be concerned if we're in the Bahamas or if we're in Florida perhaps and in different places where hurricanes will possibly come through. Now God does protect us. He sets His angels about us.

In Colossians 2, let's go there because Colossians is often used to say that these holy days are no longer necessary to be observed. Is that what it's going to say? Is that what we'll read here? Let's go to Colossians 2, the church of Colossae. Colossians 2, verse 8.

Paul says, Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit. Satan has deceived the whole world and his minions, those who follow him. Practice in deceit. They continue to practice their deceit today. Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ. We've been talking about what Christ wants us to do, what Christ teaches us to do. He is the Lord of the Sabbath. He is the Lord of these holy days. We're to observe them and honor Him by keeping them and honor the Father by observing these days.

Let's go to verse 11. In Him, in Christ, you were also circumcised with the circumcision made without hands by putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ. Christ died for us. He was crucified for us. He laid His entire life down for us. Buried with Him in baptism. In Romans 6, it talks about that, being crucified with Christ. Buried with Him in baptism, in which you also were raised with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. God works in us just as He does in His Son, whom He raised from the dead. I will be your God, and you will be my people. That's the vision that we have to have, brethren. God wants to be your God, and you have to want to be His child. And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, because we are corrupt in the flesh, He has made alive together with Him, with Christ, having forgiven you all trespasses. When we repent of our sins, He forgives us all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us. Okay, what is against us? Is God's holy law against us? When we don't murder one another, is that against us? When we don't lie to each other, is that against us? When we don't commit adultery, is that against us? No, God's law is for us. It's by His law that we live, and that we abundantly live. Having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us. What is against us? Is it not our sins that are against us? This debt of guilt. We are guilty because of our sins. That's what's been nailed to the cross. Our sins have been forgiven in the blood of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

Don't let anyone deceive you, but believe the Word in the Bible, what the Bible teaches us. And stay faithful to it. He has taken it out of the way. He's nailed it to the cross. Our sins are forgiven. Thank God that our sins are forgiven in Christ our Savior.

Let's read a little further here. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. So let no one judge you, let no one call you into question in food or in drink. God tells us what we can eat and what we can drink, which days to keep regarding a festival or a new moon or a sabbath. Don't let anyone call you in question on these things. Be faithful in observing them and keeping them. You see, already deceit had come into the church. The iniquity of Satan the devil was working. The mystery of iniquity was working and deception was working and people were being deceived. And Paul says these feast days, they're a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ. It's the church of God that we should look to for God's truth. We are to be the pillar and the ground of His truth. So let no one call you into question, keep these days. If anyone needs an excused absence for keeping these days, we provide them. Because we keep God's holy days. And we make no excuses for that.

So stand up and be faithful. Stand in the gap and be counted as one worthy. God makes us worthy by living in us and helping us, as Mr. Volchev said, to have strength. Christ works in us to do that which is right and good. Let no one cheat you of your reward, taking delight in false humility and worship of angels, intruding into those things which He has not seen, mainly puffed up by His fleshly mind and not holding fast to the head, to Christ, the head of the church, from whom all the body, nourished and knit together by joints and ligaments, grows with the increase that is from God. Therefore, if you died with Christ from the basic principles of the world, why as though living in the world do you subject yourselves to regulations? Now there were people that were ascetics. There were all kinds of strange ideas and philosophies, just as there is today. Do not touch, do not taste, do not handle, which all concern things which perish with the using according to the commandments and the doctrines of men. We are not to follow man, we are to follow God. These things, indeed, have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh. It is only Christ living in us that will give us victory over the flesh. It is not these other gimmicks and things that man may teach. The Gentile Christians were keeping God's holy days. This was around AD 60 that we are reading these things here in Colossians, somewhere in that neighborhood, many years after Christ had died. Now let's go to Zechariah. Let's go back to the Old Testament, but let's look to the future. What does God say about the future? Zechariah 14. The Old Testament is a living book. It is part of God's holy Bible. It has prophecies that have not yet been fulfilled, but will be fulfilled in the future. We need to live by every word of God. Zechariah 14.16. It shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem. This is a prophecy. It is yet to be fulfilled. The nations will come against Jerusalem. There will be a great battle. The Battle of Armageddon, as they will gather in the Valley of Megiddo. They will come against Jerusalem. They shall go up from year to year to worship the King. After Christ returns, then these days will be observed. People will flow to Jerusalem from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of Hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. Why would we do that if these days are not important today? It doesn't make sense. God's way makes sense. It shall be that whichever of the families of the earth do not come up to Jerusalem to worship the King, the Eternal of Hosts, on them there will be no rain. If the family of Egypt will not come up and enter in, they shall have no rain. They shall receive the plague with which the Lord strikes the nations who do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. God is going to strike anyone who will not keep the Feast. And it's not just the Feast of Tabernacles. It's the days of 11 bread. It's the Feast of Pentecost. The Feast of Trumpets. All of these days will be observed. And anyone who will not come up and observe them will have a curse upon them.

This shall be the punishment of Egypt and the punishment of all the nations that do not come up to keep the Feast of Tabernacles. In that day holiness to the Lord shall be engraved in the bells of the horses, the pots in the Lord's house shall be like the bowls before the altar. Yes, every pot in Jerusalem and Judah shall be holiness to the Lord of Hosts. Everyone who sacrifices shall come and take them and cook in them. In that day there shall no longer be a Canaanite in the house of the Lord of Hosts. In other words, all people will come to repent and to observe and keep God's commandments in His laws, or they will be no more. Now, in Nehemiah chapter 8, it talks about the principle of rejoicing as you keep the Feast of God. Let's go there briefly in Nehemiah chapter 8.

Of course, Ezra and Nehemiah had been in captivity in Babylon, and they came back. God led them back and used them, Ezra and Nehemiah, as governor and as the scribe, to bring the children of Israel back into the land. In Nehemiah chapter 8, it shows that they had lost sight of the Feast of God. They were not observing these feasts. Ezra was reading the law to them in chapter 8. In verse 9, Nehemiah, who was the governor, Ezra the priest, and scribe, and the Levites, who taught the people, said to all the people, This day is holy to the Lord your God. Now, this was on the first day. When the seventh month came, the first day, it was the Feast of Trumpets to begin with. They were reading these things. They were reading the book of the law. And they were coming to repentance. This day is holy to the Lord your God. Do not mourn nor weep, for all the people wept when they heard the words of the law.

Then he said to them, Go your way and eat the fat, drink the sweet, send portion to those for whom nothing is prepared. For this day is holy to our Lord. Do not sorrow, for the joy of the Lord is your strength. So the Levites quieted all the people, saying, Be still, for the day is holy. Do not be grieved. And all the people went their way to eat and drink, to send portions and rejoice greatly, because they understood the words that were declared to them. This was a time of repentance. Unfortunately, it didn't continue very long. So then they read about the Feast of Tabernacles and how they were to be observing the Feast of Tabernacles. But notice in verse 17, So the whole assembly of those who had returned from the captivity made booths and sat under the booths. For since the days of Joshua, the son of Nun, until that day the children of Israel had not done so.

They had not done so. And there was very great gladness. Also, day by day, from the first day until the last day, he read from the book of the law of God, and they kept the Feast seven days, and on the eighth day, there was a sacred assembly. According to the prescribed manner, they were keeping the Feast.

Rejoice as you keep the Feast of God. We should look forward to the weekly Sabbath. And I know you do. It's a wonderful time to be here together, to rest, and to worship God on this day. And we look forward to the annual Holy Days that will be coming upon us very soon now. Rejoice as you keep God's Feast. Get a little Feast fever. All of us. It should be contagious. It should start building. And get to a fever pitch by the time we're there. In 2 Corinthians 5, verse 7, it talks about, For we walk by faith, not by sight. Now, the vast majority of people on the earth will not keep God's annual Holy Days. They will not keep God's weekly Sabbath day. So if we walk by sight, we will follow them.

Because that's what they're doing. But brethren, we will walk by faith. And we will read God's Word, and we will be instructed out of the Word of God. And we will know that we must keep God's Feast. We must keep His Sabbath. God has sanctified these days and made them holy. We dishonor Him when we dishonor these days. So let us all be careful in observing God's Sabbath. Observing them will strengthen our faith in their importance. Now, God's weekly Sabbath and His annual Sabbath are a tremendous blessing. God's annual Sabbath is revealed to us more clearly God's wonderful plan of salvation. These days are indeed holy. They're sanctified. They're set apart for a holy purpose and a holy design. Christ Himself observed these days. Christ's disciples observed these days long after Christ's crucifixion. It was Christ's custom to keep these days. I don't think we even went to Luke 4, verse 16, I think, where it says it was His custom. It was His custom to keep these days. Christ kept these days. He taught His disciples to observe these days long after Christ's crucifixion. It's important that we, too, continue to keep observing these annual reminders of God's love and concern, and certainly the weekly Sabbath that points to our Creator. These true holy days were created, sanctified, and set apart by God as commanded assemblies to show our destiny. Our destiny, your destiny and mine, is to live forever, just as our Creator. Has lived forever and will continue to live forever. It is our destiny to live forever in God's glorious Kingdom as the very children of God.