As disciples of Jesus, we can choose to be in the same rhythm of the holidays (Feasts) that Jesus followed, and partake in the Feasts of the Bible. Keeping the appointed feasts is not a salvation issue, and please DO NOT feel condemned if you have never recognized the Sabbath or the appointed feasts before. You should, however, be aware there are keys to unlocking truths that we need for understanding God better. Partaking in His Feasts is one way to know Him better. Habakkuk says, “Revelation awaits an appointed time.” Every year we have the opportunity to partake in God’s appointed feasts and gain a deeper revelation of God. Each celebrated chance draws us closer to God.
In Genesis 2:1-3 it says “…God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation.”
Understanding the Feasts: A Simple Guide
The Appointed Times are special times that God gave to help people live in a rhythm each year. They are like reminders of how to connect with God and live in His ways. These special days are listed in Leviticus 23. Here’s an easy-to-understand overview:
Sabbath (Shabbat)
- What It’s About: This happens every week. It’s a time to stop working, rest, worship God, and enjoy meals together. It’s like practicing what life with God in His kingdom will be like.
Passover & 7 Days of Unleavened Bread
- What It’s About: This reminds us of how God rescued Israel from slavery in Egypt and how they wandered in the desert for 40 years before entering the Promised Land. It’s a time to remember God’s care and faithfulness. This is a Passover Seder meal that can help you experience the exodus of Egypt.
First Fruits
- What It’s About: This was a joyful parade where people brought the first fruits of their harvest to the temple to thank God for providing food from the land. It was a celebration of God’s blessings.
Shavuot (Feast of Weeks or Pentecost)
- What It’s About: This remembers when God gave the Torah (instructions) to Israel at Mount Sinai. The Torah includes the 10 Commandments, which teach us how to love God and love others. When God spoke, it sounded like a trumpet, and His words were like sparks of fire flying through the air, similar to what happens when a hammer hits hot metal. It is the 50th day after Passover. It was the day God gave the Torah to Israel in Exodus 19, and it is also the day the Holy Spirit was poured out in Acts 2. Both events had fire, smoke, loud sounds, and are milestones of our faith.
Feast of Trumpets
- What It’s About: This is a time to think about the past year and make changes to prepare for the new year. Think about it as if you get the opportunity to speak directly to the King about your life on how you plan to make adjustments to align with His will. It’s called the Feast of Trumpets; it is a warning to repent. Remember that when God spoke to Israel it sounded like a trumpet, and He was giving instructions on corrections that should be made to live according to His will. It is considered the time when the King is in the Field. Here is an excellent teaching on this. Alephbeta.org also has an excellent guide for Rosh Hashanah.
Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)
- What It’s About: This is a serious day to ask God for mercy and forgiveness. The word atonement means “covering,” and it’s about God making a way to cover our sins. It’s like preparing for an important life review before God. It is a day when your story is sealed and locked up in the Book of Life. The final decision of what is going to happen in your life for the coming year is made, and whatever the verdict is, it is sealed. The 10 days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are called the Days of Awe. It is a period of time when someone needs to pray for grace, mercy, compassion, and ask God to let them have the best year possible. You should prepare by taking an account of your life for the 30 days prior to these 10 days. The Rabbis describe this period as a time when the gates of heaven are open, and it is an appointed time where God will listen to your prayers of repentance. In Leviticus 16:30 it says, “For on this day shall atonement be made for you to cleanse you. You shall be clean before the Lord from all your sins.” Partaking in this day helps you live out a repentance driven life. Yom Kippur is a day of prayer and fasting, and it has been appointed by God to ask Him to forgive you of your sins.
Sukkot (Feast of Tabernacles)
- What It’s About: This is a 7-day celebration of joy, food, and rest. It’s about imagining life with God as King in His kingdom. The 8th day represents forever—eternity with God. During this time, people would eat meals, worship, and remember how God provided for them. The first 7 days are the celebration for the feast, and the 8th day is a special day to celebrate the Torah. Leviticus 23:34-36
Fun fact: In Temple times, many of the sacrifices during the feasts were dinners! Everyone shared the food—God got a portion, the priests got a portion, and the person bringing the sacrifice also got some to eat. At King Solomon’s celebration during Sukkot, thousands of animals were shared because so many people came to celebrate!
A Few Things to Know:
- Timing: All these festivals start at sunset because, on the Jewish calendar, a new day begins at sunset.
- Connection with God: These festivals are like a door to the spiritual world. By celebrating them, people can come closer to God and His eternal kingdom.
- Sabbath Rest: The ultimate goal is to live in God’s eternal rest, like the Garden of Eden, where everything is peaceful and good.
Jewish tradition sees these instructions as a way to honor God as King and live in His presence. The Bible promises that one day, God will change hearts so people naturally follow His ways and celebrate these times with Him forever. You can read Leviticus 26:40-46 and Jeremiah 31:31-40 to learn more about this promise.
More On The Appointed Times
The Sabbath is a day created for blessings. If you believe in keeping the 10 commandments, the Sabbath is commandment number four. Every Friday night is an opportunity to partake and receive a double portion. In Exodus 16:23 God commanded the people, “Tomorrow is a day of solemn rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord.” This command was given to the children of Israel and the Gentiles that came out of Egypt with them. The Sabbath was recognized well before God gave Moses the 10 Commandments. Needless to say, Exodus 20:8 says, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” All observant Jews, and some Christians start honoring the Sabbath day when the sun goes down on Friday night by lighting a candle and taking communion.
We understand there may be questions about when the Sabbath day begins; besides the biblical references we have, and the Jewish traditions for the day, many countries call the actual day of Saturday the “Sabbath”. Starting in Genesis 1:5 it tells us God’s beginning of the day starts when the sun goes down as it says, “There was evening and there was morning.” Evening came first. Just as God has always used the Jewish people to give the world the Bible, they also have the understanding of how to keep the appointed feasts and when to celebrate them. If you would like more information on this subject here is a video from Rabbi Richman or a book called From Sabbath to Sabbath by Daniel Lancaster.
Practical Ways to Participate
For the purpose of this 30-day journey we want to give you some information to help you start a journey, and provide a few resources for you to dig deeper to find out more information about the appointed feasts. In Leviticus 23 verse 1 it says:
“These are the appointed feasts of the Lord that you shall proclaim as holy convocations; they are my appointed feasts.”
Do not let this information overwhelm you; please use it as a reference guide:
If you would like to be in rhythm with God’s calendar, you can partake at some level in each one of these appointed times. For example, here are some practical ways to participate in them (all dates below are references for the United States.):
If you decide to join in the rhythm of the appointed times, start small. You do not have to do all of them at once. This post is for reference purposes only.
- On the Sabbath, on Friday night when the sun goes down, you can celebrate Sabbath by having communion, a special family dinner, and study the Torah. As you meet others who choose to experience Sabbath, you will grow in commitment to the day. Every family and community have their own traditions, but to help explain how you can share in the appointed time, here is a simplified approach. Here are also 10 free audios on Sabbath from Beth Immanuel Messianic Synagogue. In the back of Aaron Eby’s book, First Steps in Messianic Jewish Prayer there are some helpful prayers. FFOZ also created a book specifically for Sabbath called The Sabbath Table Prayer Book. It is full of helpful hints to lead you through many of the feasts.
- For Passover (Evening of Sat, Apr 12, 2025 – Sun, Apr 20, 2025) FFOZ has an excellent book for Christians to follow on Passover called the Cup of Redemption: A Messianic Haggadah for Passover. The dinner will begin after sundown on the 12th, and it usually last until after midnight. Participating in a seder can be very eye opening to the death of Jesus.
- On the Feast of Unleavened Bread, you can participate in this by joining in the counting of the Omer that is explained in Leviticus 23:15-16. Check back around March and we will provide a document for you to follow for each of the days.
- Shavuot (Evening of Sun, Jun 1, 2025 – Tue, Jun 3, 2025) – Here is an audio on Shavuot from Beth Immanuel Messianic Synagogue.
The Holy Day of Shavuot by D. T. Lancaster
- Rosh HaShanah will begin on the evening of Mon, Sep 22, 2025 – Wed, Sep 24, 2025. It is a Yom Tov (a good day). It is a two-day event. You should have a meal that is full of sweet foods and nothing sour or bitter. Start the meal by saying a prayer where you are joining yourself to the God of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, asking for forgiveness, and giving Him authority as King. There is a seder before the meal, but if this is the first time you celebrate this day, you can at least eat sweet foods and you will be partaking in it. There’s a dinner meal Monday and Tuesday night. Lunch meals Tuesday and Wednesday. Prayers are said on both days. If you are interested in learning more about how the Jews pray during this time Chabad.org has resources you can check out. Here is another good resource from FFOZ to help you understand the prayers.
Rosh HaShanah and the Silence in Heaven by D. T. Lancaster
- Yom Kippur is the evening of Wed, Oct 1, 2025 – Thu, Oct 2, 2025, and it starts at sundown. There is a special dinner a couple hours before the sun goes down. Once the sun goes down (make sure to check with your physician before partaking) this starts a 24-hour period of time where you do not eat or drink (not even to brush your teeth). This is a fast day to the Lord. If fasting is too much for you, then at least do not self-indulge on that day. If necessary, Rabbis say it is permissible to eat an olive if needed to eat something. The point is, this is a fast day you are committing to God, confessing your sins, and praying for forgiveness. You can stand in the gap for your friends and family and ask God to forgive them and have mercy. This is also a day many people give charity in memory of their parents to honor them.
How to Observe Yom Kippur by Aaron Eby
- Sukkot is the evening of Mon, Oct 6, 2025 – Mon, Oct 13, 2025, and it starts at sundown. Here is a Sukkot Field Guide. There is a special dinner a couple hours before the sun goes down, and this is a time where the Jewish people will eat at least once a day in a tabernacle, and sleep in it. It is kind of like an outdoor camp site structure (Sukkah.) It is also a time where everyone is commanded to be happy.
Sukkot and the Festival of the Nations BY: Toby Janicki
A Great Explanation of the Feasts from Rabbi Eisner
God has special days — no, they’re more than special, they’re holy. He established these holy days and called His people to celebrate them. Jesus did. His disciples did. So, what happened? Where’d they go? They’re still here and always will be. This series will help you rediscover them.
“Party Like Jesus! Connecting Disciples to God’s Holy Days” is a series specifically designed to introduce people to the calendar Jesus would have lived by. Want to learn more about the biblical calendar and how the festivals all work together to paint a picture of God’s character and His plan for us? Join us each week in this multi-part series for an eye-opening experience that will forever change how you look at the biblical calendar and festivals.
As you spend time with the Jewish people you will gain your own experiences and fall in love with the holidays. Please do not ever feel condemned or obligated to keep the appointed times exactly as the Jewish people do. If you are not Jewish and you want to partake and draw closer to God, then do what you can- your best. The reason we have Jesus as our Messiah is to be able to connect to the Jewish people through Him and live in rhythm with Jesus. If you would like to be in rhythm with God’s calendar, celebrating His appointed feasts is the best way.
Back to Day 26 | Continue to Day 28