Day Four

Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, these are the appointed feasts of the Lord that you shall proclaim as holy convocations; they are my appointed feasts. - Leviticus 23:2

Under the Old Covenant, God prescribed an annual rotation of sacrifice-centered feasts or holy convocations to gather His people to Himself. Each time, the blood of animals cleansed their sins so they could enter God’s holy presence, first in the tabernacle and then in the temple.

When Jesus, the Lamb of God, offered His body once for all, He became the final sacrifice for sin and established a New Covenant under which His shed blood cleanses and secures us as His holy people. God seals us with the guarantee of His indwelling presence, and each of our bodies becomes a “temple of the Holy Spirit” (1 Corinthians 6:19). Together, we are being joined and built together into a holy dwelling place for God (Ephesians 2:20-22). We are His house of prayer (Matthew 21:13), which is the holy convocation by which we "draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need" (Hebrews 4:16).

We no longer sacrifice animals and observe feasts; we offer God our bodies--our very lives--"a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship" (Romans 12:1). Our unceasing prayers are counted as incense before him (Psalm 141:2, Psalm, Revelation 8:4). In fact, God’s will for us in Christ is to "rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances” (1 Thessalonians 5:16-18).

Freed from the law’s rules, regulations, and holy rituals, and through prayer, we bring the same sacrifices as our Old Covenant peers:

● Pure, broken, and contrite hearts

● Lifted hands and bowed heads

● Listening ears

● Lips that give thanks

● Acknowledgment and praise of His name and deeds

● Singing songs of joy

We bring the same free-will offerings when we:

● Obey His word and His voice

● Walk in love

● Give all to serve God and others

Where Scripture specified a feast as a statute forever (Exodus 12:14), we might say it's an appointed time of prayer: a set time dedicated to God, something all of us are bound to, because it binds us to Him.

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