Answered Scripture

Does it matter which days we observe when it comes to the worship of God? In short, yes. There are different days that He has put in place for us to devote time to Him. You can find these in Leviticus 23. He calls them “His feasts”. There are a total of seven annual feasts. These are known as yearly Sabbaths. And then we have the weekly Sabbath, of course; still a day we are to devote to Him with worship and praise.

Leviticus 23 starts by stating, “The feasts of the LORD, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.” He doesn’t say these are Israel’s or Jewish feasts; they are His. He calls them holy convocations. Now you may ask, what are those? Those are times when the people of God come together to worship God. The word convocation in the Bible is translated by the Hebrew word miqrā’, pronounced mik-raw’; Strong’s H4744. Its meaning is convoking, reading, a calling together, a sacred assembly. H4774 comes from the root H7121, which is translated as called out, i.e., a public meeting (the act, the persons, or the place); also a rehearsal: — assembly, calling, convocation, reading.

The first two feasts, the Passover and Unleavened Bread, fall simultaneously. Now you may be thinking, Passover? Wasn’t that done away with when Yehoshua died on the cross? Yes, but He instituted the New Covenant Passover with His disciples the night before His death. We read that event repeatedly in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, but the Apostle Paul also kept it well after Yehoshua had died and was resurrected. You can find that in 1 Corinthians 5 where he is correcting the Corinthian church and telling them to purge out the old leaven…in verse 8 he states, “Therefore let us keep the feast, not with the old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” He was telling them what their mindset should be when keeping the Passover.

The next is Pentecost, also known as the Feast of Weeks or Firstfruits. So we know the apostles still kept this day after Yehoshua’s death. We saw this when the Holy Spirit was poured out on the church during this feast. We can read about this event in Acts 2. The first verse states, “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place.” Why would they all be there if it wasn’t to observe Pentecost? We even find Paul rushing to Jerusalem to keep Pentecost in Acts 20:16 and staying in Ephesus until Pentecost, 1 Corinthians 16:8.

The following feast comes in the fall. There is the Feast of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, the Feast of Tabernacles, and the Eighth Day, or Last Great Day, as some know it. All of these are holy convocations to God. Each one has a specific purpose and meaning behind it. So, if you noticed, I don’t mention Christmas or Easter. This is because these are man-made holidays, not God’s holy days. These are no more than Satan’s way of trying to divert true God worship with fake days, so we celebrate on those days instead of the ones God put in place. Most feel like they are doing right by them, but there is so much pagan influence behind them that God is not pleased with those at all. Let’s get some background on these days to see why God hates this.

Let’s start with a few verses to get God’s view on things He didn’t put in place. Deuteronomy 12:29-32 warns us about taking pagan customs and mixing them into His worship. He clearly states that we are not to worship Him in that way. Part of His statement is, “Whatever I command you, be careful to observe it; you shall not add to it nor take away from it”. That is pretty straightforward about how He feels about things we add to worship Him that He didn’t put in place.

So, you may be saying, but aren’t Christmas and Easter His days of worship? In short, no. These are days that were created to make it seem they are worshipping God, but they include many pagan customs. These were formed when the church was trying to convert pagans to Christianity. By letting them keep some of their customs, they were more likely to convert. Let’s start with Christmas.

First of all, I want you to think about something. So, let’s say everyone around you decided to celebrate your birthday on another day, and let’s say that they gave gifts to each other and not you; so when your birthday did come around, there was no celebration or recognition of that day. How would that make you feel? Do you think that would be ok? Well, that’s sort of what you do on Christmas. Now, I know some will say, I know December 25th is not His birthday, but it is the thought that counts. Really? So, would you be okay with people using a day other than your birthday and telling you that the thought counts?

Ok, let’s just figure this part out. If Yehoshua thought that His birthday was something to keep, don’t you think something would be mentioned about celebrating it, or even the actual day He was born? God is pretty clear about the days we should keep. Why is there no mention of this? We can calculate when He was born based on some scripture information, but pinpointing a day is impossible. So, where did the 25th come from? It’s a celebration of the winter solstice, a popular pagan religious celebration, the sun’s birth. That is just one of many pagan customs that are mixed into this idea that Yehoshua wants us to celebrate His birth. The thing is, His death and resurrection are what is most important. Without that, we would have no hope.

Now, with that said, let’s get into Easter. Another pagan holiday. But, you say, that concerns Yehoshua’s death and resurrection. Yes, but not the way it should be kept. Yehoshua Himself put into motion how we should keep this time, and it’s not the same “day” each year as man’s tradition teaches. Yehoshua personally kept the Passover while on earth, clear up to when He was taken away to be crucified, and He gave it a more precise meaning under the New Covenant that fateful night. He also told His followers to continue this observance in remembrance of Him and His death, not to change and add bunnies and eggs. It’s a solemn night, not a celebration during the day.

I have only skimmed over the surface of this subject. I may do a couple more, each just focusing on each holiday, but until then, you can find a ton of information about this subject at https://www.ucg.org/learn/bible-study-aids/holidays-or-holy-days-does-it-matter-which-days-we-observe