GOD’S SAVINGS TIME: REDEEMING THE TIME WE HAVE

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

The Ritual That Changes Nothing

Twice a year we perform the same ritual. We move the hands of our clocks forward and backward as if time itself were clay in our grasp. We complain about losing an hour or gaining one. We often discuss “saving time,” although no one has ever saved a single second. The sun still rises and sets on the schedule God ordained in Genesis. The day remains twenty‑four hours long, no matter how many times we adjust the numbers glowing on our screens.

Daylight Savings Time is a perfect picture of human illusion. It feels important, but it accomplishes nothing of eternal value. It shifts the clock, but it does not shift the heart. It rearranges the hours, but it does not redeem them. It is a semi-annual ritual. It signifies our desire to feel in control of something we cannot command.

Scripture, however, calls us to something far weightier. We are not commanded to save time. We are commanded to redeem it.

Redeeming Time, Not Rearranging It

Paul writes, “Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.” (Ephesians 5:16). The word redeem means to buy back, to seize, to rescue from loss. It is the language of urgency, stewardship, and eternal purpose. We cannot redeem the hours on a clock, but we can redeem the opportunities God places before us. We can redeem conversations, relationships, moments of influence, and windows of grace.

Paul reinforces this in Colossians 4:5: “Walk in wisdom toward them that are without, redeeming the time.” This is not about managing schedules. It is about reaching souls. It is about recognizing that every moment carries eternal weight.

Daylight Savings Time pretends to give us more daylight. God’s Savings Time calls us to walk in the light while it is still available.

The Call to Watchfulness

Daylight Savings Time is a harmless ritual, but spiritually it mirrors a far more dangerous pattern. Twice a year we adjust our clocks without adjusting our lives. We move the hands forward or backward. We feel as though we have accomplished something meaningful. Yet, nothing in eternity has changed. The sun rises and sets exactly as God ordained. The hours remain the same. Only our perception shifts.

In the same way, many believers have been lulled into a false sense of security. This is due to soothing messages and comfortable routines. A Christianity that promises rest without responsibility can also be misleading. We have been told to relax and settle in. We are encouraged to enjoy the blessings of God as if the Kingdom were a recliner. We treat discipleship as though it were a leisure activity. But Scripture paints a very different picture. The Kingdom of God is not a lounge chair; it is a field. It is not a place for slumber; it is a place for labor. It is not a retreat from responsibility; it is a call to action.

Paul’s warning becomes clearer in this light: “Knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep.” (Romans 13:11).. He is not speaking to the world; he is speaking to the Church. He is speaking to those who have drifted into spiritual Standard Time. They have become comfortable, predictable, and unhurried. They are unaware of the lateness of the hour. He follows with a phrase that cuts through every illusion of delay: “The night is far spent, the day is at hand.” (Romans 13:12).

This is not a poetic flourish. It is a diagnosis. The night is not approaching; it is already advanced. The day is not distant; it is pressing in. The time is late, and the work is urgent. The fields are not waiting for us to feel ready; they are already white for harvest. Jesus said, “Lift up your eyes… the fields are white already to harvest.” (John 4:35). Harvest time is not a season for sleep. Proverbs warn, “He that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.” (Proverbs 10:5).

The Church has been comforted by complacency, but the Kingdom is calling us into wakefulness. We are not here to adjust clocks; we are here to redeem time. We are not here to preserve our comfort; we are here to rescue the lost. We are not here to drift through days; we are here to work while it is still day, because Jesus Himself declared, “Night is coming, when no one can work.” (John 9:4).

This is the heart of God’s Savings Time. It is not about gaining an hour of sunlight. It is about seizing the hour of salvation. It is about recognizing that every moment carries eternal weight. It is about refusing to sleep through the harvest while souls hang in the balance. It is about waking up, rising up, and stepping into the fields before the final night falls.

The Fields Are White, Not Waiting

Jesus told His disciples, “Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” (John 4:35). The harvest is not someday. The harvest is not when we feel ready. The harvest is not when the Church is comfortable. The harvest is now.

Proverbs adds its own warning: “He that sleepeth in harvest is a son that causeth shame.” (Proverbs 10:5). We are not called to sleep in harvest. We are called to labor in it.

Daylight Savings Time may shift the clock, but it does not shift the urgency of the harvest. Souls are perishing. Hearts are hardening. The night is approaching. The Church can’t afford to drift into spiritual Standard Time. Routine, complacency, and delay must be avoided. God is calling us into His Savings Time.

Numbering Our Days

Moses prayed, “Teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” (Psalm 90:12). Numbering our days is not about counting them. It is about valuing them. It means understanding that every day is a gift. Each moment involves stewardship. Every opportunity is a divine appointment.

We cannot save time. But we can redeem it. We can invest it. We can sow it into eternity.

Daylight Savings Time is a ritual that changes nothing. God’s Savings Time is a calling that changes everything.

The Question That Matters

The question is not whether we have adjusted our clocks. The question is whether we have adjusted our lives.

Are we redeeming the time? Are we awake? Are we working while it is still day? Are we living in God’s Savings Time?

Because the night is coming. The trumpet will sound. And the work will be finished.

From Chains of Captivity to Prayers for Victory

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

A Letter from St. Patrick to a Nation in Need

To the people of this land, in a time of confusion and fear, from Patrick, a servant of Christ Jesus.

I was not born a saint. I was not born a hero. I was a boy who ignored the living God until chains taught me to pray. They took me from my home. They dragged me across the sea. They sold me into slavery in a land whose language I did not know. I fed animals in the cold. I slept on the ground. I feared the night. But in the fields of my captivity, the Lord had mercy on me. He opened my blind eyes. He broke my proud heart. He became my only hope.

When He delivered me, I believed the story was finished. But God does not free a man only for himself. He frees him for others. In a dream I heard the voices of the Irish calling out, “Come walk among us once more.” And the Spirit of God burned within me. The land that broke me became the land I was sent to heal.

I returned with no army, no wealth, no power—only the gospel of Jesus Christ. I walked into the halls of kings and the camps of druids. I faced curses, threats, and death. But Christ was my shield. Christ was my courage. Christ was my victory. I did not change Ireland. God did. I was only the vessel He forged in chains.

I look upon your nation now. It is anxious, divided, and wandering. It is hungry for truth. I tell you what I learned in my captivity. When a people forget God, they lose themselves. But when a people turn to Him, even the darkest land becomes a place of light.

You do not need luck. You do not need legends. You do not need the trappings of a holiday that has forgotten its own story. You need the living Christ. The same Christ met me in the fields of my slavery. He will also meet you in the wilderness of your time. The same Christ who broke my chains can break yours. The same Christ who sent me back to the land of my captors can send you. He can guide you into the broken places of your own nation.

In my day, I prayed a prayer of armor—a cry for God’s presence to surround me in a land filled with fear and darkness:

Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me…

This was not poetry. It was survival. It was surrender. It was the only way to stand in a world at war with truth.

And long after my bones returned to the earth, another Irish believer prayed a similar cry—a prayer you now sing as a hymn:

Be Thou my vision, O Lord of my heart…Thou my best thought, by day or by night…

BE THOU MY VISION A FITTING SONG FOR A TIME SUCH AS THIS

BE THOU MY VISION a Temple Music Production, all rights reserved

If you want to see revival during your lifetime, pray this just as I did: “Lord, be my vision.” Be my wisdom. Be my strength. Be my shield. Be my everything.”

From chains of captivity to prayers for victory—this is my testimony. Not of who I am, but of who God is.

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Patrick, a slave of Christ, and a witness to His mercy.

HYMNS OF REDEMPTION: NEAR THE CROSS

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

NEAR THE CROSS FANNY CROSBY-WILLIAM COWPER

Some hymns lift our eyes to heaven, and some draw our hearts back to the place where everything changed. Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross does both. This hymn was written by Fanny Crosby. Her physical blindness sharpened her spiritual sight. It is a quiet plea for nearness, intimacy, and anchoring grace.

Crosby never treated the cross as a distant historical event. For her, it was a living place of refuge, a wellspring of mercy, and the center of Christian hope. Her words are simple, but they are not shallow. They carry the weight of a life shaped by prayer, dependence, and a deep awareness of Christ’s sustaining presence.

Cowper’s hymn cries out for cleansing. In contrast, Crosby’s hymn leans into abiding. It offers a daily, moment-by-moment nearness that keeps the believer grounded in grace. This is not a hymn of crisis; it is a hymn of posture. It teaches us to stay close to the place where love was poured out. It also urges us to stay where redemption was secured. And finally, where hope was born.

The anchor comes from Jesus’ own words in John 12:32:

“And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”

Crosby hears that promise and responds with a simple, lifelong prayer: Draw me. Keep me. Hold me near.

As you listen to the piano meditation, let this hymn settle your spirit. Let it remind you that the cross is not merely the beginning of your faith — it is the place you return to again and again for strength, clarity, and peace.

Hymn Lyrics: Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross

(Public Domain)

1
Jesus, keep me near the cross,
There a precious fountain;
Free to all, a healing stream,
Flows from Calvary’s mountain.

Refrain
In the cross, in the cross,
Be my glory ever;
Till my raptured soul shall find
Rest beyond the river.

2
Near the cross, a trembling soul,
Love and mercy found me;
There the Bright and Morning Star
Sheds its beams around me.

3
Near the cross! O Lamb of God,
Bring its scenes before me;
Help me walk from day to day,
With its shadow o’er me.

4
Near the cross I’ll watch and wait,
Hoping, trusting ever;
Till I reach the golden strand,
Just beyond the river.

Audio Meditation

COPYRIGHT TEMPLE MUSIC PRODUCTIONS 2025


Let the music draw you into the nearness of Christ — the place where mercy flows, where burdens lift, and where your heart finds rest.

About the Hymnwriter

Fanny J. Crosby (1820–1915) stands as one of the most prolific hymnwriters in Christian history. Though physically blind from infancy, she possessed a spiritual clarity that shaped thousands of hymns still sung today. Her life was marked by humility, prayer, and a deep love for Christ.

Jesus, Keep Me Near the Cross reflects her lifelong theme: staying close to the heart of God. Crosby never wrote from theory — she wrote from communion. Her hymns invite believers not just to believe in Christ, but to walk with Him, lean on Him, and remain near Him.

Benedictional Prayer

May the nearness of Christ steady your heart today.
May His presence quiet your anxieties and renew your strength.
May His cross remain your refuge, your anchor, and your peace.
And may the One who draws all people to Himself draw you ever closer.
Amen.

What Foundation Are You Building On?

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

The Question Every Disciple Must Face

Every life is built on a foundation, whether we acknowledge it or not. Jesus made this clear when He said,

“Whoever hears these sayings of Mine and does them, I will liken him unto a wise man who built his house upon a rock”
(Matthew 7:24–25)

The storm did not reveal their intentions; it revealed their foundations. Both men heard the words of Christ, but only one obeyed them. The difference was not sincerity, emotion, or religious activity. The difference was obedience to the words of the Lord.

Paul echoes this truth when he writes,

“For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ”
(1 Corinthians 3:11)

He warns believers to “take heed how you build” (1 Corinthians 3:10). This is because the Day will test every man’s work with fire. Wood, hay, and stubble burn quickly, but gold, silver, and precious stones endure. The question is not whether you are building, but what you are building with—and what you are building on.

Sincerity Is Not a Foundation

Many Christians today are sincere, but sincerity is not a foundation. Sincerity can be sincerely misplaced. Israel was sincere when Paul said they had “a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge” (Romans 10:2). They were passionate, but they were passionately wrong because they substituted their own righteousness for the righteousness of God.

Jesus confronted the Pharisees for the same reason:

“You make void the commandment of God by your tradition” (Mark 7:13)

They did not reject God outright; they simply elevated human teaching until it overshadowed divine instruction. This same pattern repeats in the modern church. People cling to rituals, holidays, denominational doctrines, and inherited practices, believing that by keeping these traditions they are honoring God. Yet when asked what the Lord requires of them, many have no answer, because they were never taught to ask.

When Tradition Replaces Truth

Many believers were taught to follow the church calendar, but not the voice of the Shepherd. They were taught to keep the traditions of men, but not the commandments of God. They were taught to carry out religious acts, but not to repent, believe, and be led by the Spirit.

Replacement holidays like Christmas and Easter are only the most visible examples. They are sentimental, familiar, and deeply ingrained, but they are not the foundation God laid. They are cultural observances elevated to the status of holy days. Meanwhile, the appointed times of the Lord are dismissed as “Jewish” or irrelevant. These times were written by His own hand, fulfilled by His Son, and witnessed by His Spirit.

Yet the New Testament speaks of Passover, Pentecost, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and Tabernacles with reverence, not dismissal. These feasts carry God’s fingerprints. They are covered with the blood of Jesus. They need no wreaths, ornaments, or external trappings to feel holy. Their holiness is inherent because their Author is holy.

But the problem goes deeper than holidays. Churches have elevated ritual washings, denominational formulas, and man‑made requirements. They value these above the weightier matters of repentance, faith, and the leading of the Spirit. People are taught to trust in the act rather than the transformation. They believe in the ritual rather than the repentance. Their faith lies more in the formula rather than the faith.

Scripture says plainly:

“As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God” (Romans 8:14)

And again:

“If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His” (Romans 8:9)

Yet many have been taught to trust in outward forms while neglecting the inward witness of the Spirit.

The Foundation God Requires

A true foundation begins with repentance, continues faithfully, and is sealed by the Spirit. It is shaped by obedience to the words of Jesus, not by the expectations of culture. It is strengthened by the fear of the Lord, not by the comfort of familiarity. It is aligned with the Father’s will, not with the calendar of man.

Micah asks the question plainly:

“What does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?” (Micah 6:8)

Jesus answers it even more directly:

“My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27)

The foundation God requires is not built on tradition, ritual, or sentiment. It is built on Christ, His Word, and His Spirit. Anything else is sand.

The Coming Test

The storm is coming, the fire is coming, and the Day is coming when every man’s work will be revealed. Jesus warned that many will say to Him, “Lord, Lord…” and list their religious activities, but He will answer,

“I never knew you” (Matthew 7:22–23)

Not because they were evil, but because they built on activity instead of obedience.

Only what is built on the Rock will stand. Only what is built on Christ, His Word, and His Spirit will endure. Everything else—no matter how sincere, sentimental, or traditional—will collapse when the winds rise.

How to Test Your Foundation

Scripture never leaves us without a remedy. The Lord not only commands us to build on the right foundation—He tells us how to examine it.

Paul urges believers to “examine yourselves, whether you be in the faith; prove your own selves” (2 Corinthians 13:5). This examination is not optional, because the testing of our foundation is not optional. The storm will come. The fire will come. The Day will come. Wisdom examines the foundation before the shaking arrives.

The first test is obedience to the words of Jesus.

“Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46)

Our foundation is unstable if tradition, culture, or denominational teaching shape our lives more than the commands of Christ. This is because it is cracked.

The second test is repentance.
John the Baptist prepared the way of the Lord by crying, “Bring forth fruits worthy of repentance” (Luke 3:8). Repentance is not a ritual; it is a turning of the heart. If repentance is absent, the foundation is weak.

The third test is the witness of the Spirit.

“The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are the children of God”
(Romans 8:16)

If the Spirit is not leading, convicting, guiding, and confirming, then the foundation is not Christ but self.

The fourth test is alignment with the Word.

“Sanctify them by Your truth; Your word is truth”
(John 17:17)

If our beliefs can’t be traced to Scripture in context, they can’t support the weight of discipleship.

Wisdom or Folly

Jesus ends His teaching on foundations with a warning and an invitation. The wise man hears and obeys. The foolish man hears and ignores. The difference is not in what they heard, but in what they did with what they heard.

Ignoring the condition of your foundation is folly. Checking it is wisdom. The storm will expose every hidden weakness, every unexamined assumption, every tradition elevated above truth. But the one who builds on Christ, His Word, and His Spirit will stand when everything else falls.

The question remains for every disciple:

What foundation are you building on—and will it stand when the testing comes?

How Easter Became A Substitute for Obedience

Allen Frederick Leave a comment

The whole problem with Easter begins with the very word itself. Long before the church ever attached it to the resurrection, Easter was the name of a spring goddess. She was celebrated with fertility rites, offerings, and seasonal rituals. The early church fathers knew this. The bishops at Nicaea knew this. Everyone in the ancient world knew this. The word carried unmistakable pagan overtones. As a result, the church found itself in an awkward position. They wanted a festival to celebrate the resurrection. However, they didn’t want it to fall on the same day as the pagan celebration that shared its name. So instead of abandoning the pagan term, they kept it—and simply moved the date.

But that raises a question no one seems willing to ask: If the name was pagan, the date was pagan, and the season was pagan, why use it at all? Why not simply keep the feast God established—Passover—which is older, biblical, commanded, fulfilled by Christ, and practiced by Jesus Himself? The answer is uncomfortable but historically undeniable: the early Gentile church wanted distance from anything that looked “too Jewish.” They did not embrace the feast God instituted. They adopted a pagan name. They shifted the date to avoid the pagan festival. Then, they declared the whole thing a “high holy day.” In a single action, they departed from the biblical calendar. They left behind the apostolic pattern. They disconnected from the very rhythm of redemption God Himself set in motion.

And this is where the real problem begins. Once the church is willing to replace what God established with what man invented, it becomes extremely easy. It becomes easy to call the invention “holy.” It also becomes easy to call the commandment “optional.” It becomes easy to defend tradition with passion while ignoring Scripture with ease. It becomes easy to forget that Jesus kept Passover, not Easter (Luke 22:15). The apostles preached Christ as our Passover Lamb, not the centerpiece of a spring festival (1 Corinthians 5:7). The early church remembered the resurrection every time they gathered. They did not do it once a year on a date calculated by the moon (Acts 20:7). There is so much wrong with this entire season. The modern church doesn’t need a new argument. It needs repentance. It needs cleansing. It needs to be washed from the layers of tradition, syncretism, and cultural compromise that have accumulated over centuries. The issue is not whether we celebrate the resurrection. The issue is whether we will honor God the way He commanded. Or will we continue to sanctify a festival He never asked for.

When the Created Becomes the Center and the Creator Becomes the Footnote

Strip away the two big festivals and the calendar collapses. Strip away the productions, the pageants, the pastel-colored Sundays, and the special offerings. Suddenly, the church is forced to face the emptiness it has been covering with seasonal excitement. The early church didn’t need a holiday to feel alive. They had the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4). They had fellowship (Acts 2:42). They had the apostles’ teaching (Acts 2:42). They had the breaking of bread (Acts 2:46). They had prayer (Acts 2:42). They had mission (Acts 8:4). They had power (Acts 4:33).

We have Christmas and Easter.

When the created thing becomes the center of our worship, the Creator becomes the footnote. Paul warned us about this mistake. “They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator.” (Romans 1:25). We read that verse and think of idols carved from wood and stone. But the modern church has its own idols—sanctified by tradition, polished by sentiment, and defended with passion. Christmas and Easter have become the emotional anchors of the Christian year. God did not command these days. Without them, the church would have to rediscover what it means to be the church. It would need to be more than just doing church.

The Author’s Argument—and the Hole Right Through the Middle of It

The article that sparked this editorial tried to defend Easter. It stated, “Easter is the axis on which the Christian year revolves.” He’s right—but not in the way he thinks. If the axis of the Christian year is a man‑made festival, then the whole thing is already off balance. The resurrection is the axis of our faith. Easter is not the resurrection. Easter is a date chosen by bishops in A.D. 325 using a formula that sounds more like astronomy than theology.

The author continues, “Without resurrection, there is no Christianity.” Amen. Scripture says the same: “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile.” (1 Corinthians 15:17); “He was raised for our justification.” (Romans 4:25). But then he makes the leap: therefore, Easter is necessary.

No Scripture. No command. No apostolic example. Just tradition.

This is how deception works—not by denying what God said, but by adding to it.

The New Testament church honored the resurrection every time they gathered. They met on the first day of the week (Acts 20:7). They broke bread in remembrance of Him (Luke 22:19; 1 Corinthians 11:26). They preached the resurrection continually (Acts 4:33). They lived in resurrection power daily (Philippians 3:10). They didn’t need a festival to remind them Jesus was alive. They were living proof.

So, if the resurrection is celebrated every week, why do we need Easter at all?

We don’t.

The modern church does—because without Easter, the calendar would be sterile, empty, exposed.

Passover Fulfilled Is Not Passover Abolished

Some argue, “Christ fulfilled Passover, so we don’t need it.” But Scripture never says Passover was abolished. It says Passover was fulfilled. “Christ, our Passover Lamb, has been sacrificed.” (1 Corinthians 5:7). At His final Passover meal, Jesus took bread. He said, “This is My body which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.” (Luke 22:19). Paul writes that the feasts and Sabbaths “are a shadow of things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ.” (Colossians 2:17).

Passover becomes the gospel in God’s own language. The Lamb is chosen without blemish (Exodus 12:5; John 1:29). The blood is applied and judgment passes over (Exodus 12:13; John 5:24; Romans 5:9). Israel is delivered from bondage (Exodus 12:42; Romans 6:6–7). The old life is buried in the sea (Exodus 14:30; Romans 6:4). On the day of Firstfruits, the first sheaf is lifted before the Lord (Leviticus 23:10–11). Paul declares, “Christ has been raised from the dead.” Christ is the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” (1 Corinthians 15:20).

Everything Easter tries to say, Passover already said—and God said it first.

Passover fulfilled does not mean Passover discarded. It means Passover understood in the light of Christ. The early believers didn’t keep Passover as a cultural relic. They saw Christ in every element. They saw the Lamb, the blood, the deliverance, the judgment passed over, the burial, the resurrection. They saw the gospel written into the calendar of God.

The Feasts of the Lord: Power, Purpose, Prophecy, and Love

Unlike Christmas and Easter, these feasts are not built on folklore, tradition, or borrowed pagan imagery. They are built on power, purpose, prophecy, and love. Each one is an exact replica of God’s dealings with man. Each one is fulfilled in Christ. Each one is a perpetual reminder of the gospel in God’s own language.

They reveal power: the power of God to save, deliver, redeem, and restore. Passover shows the power of the Lamb. Unleavened Bread shows the power of cleansing. Firstfruits shows the power of resurrection. Pentecost shows the power of the Spirit. Trumpets shows the power of awakening. Atonement shows the power of forgiveness. Tabernacles shows the power of God dwelling with His people.

They reveal purpose: God does not move randomly. The feasts show that salvation is not a moment but a story. It is not an isolated event but a carefully ordered plan. They teach us who God is and how He works.

They reveal prophecy: Christ fulfilled the spring feasts in His first coming with exact precision. He died on Passover (John 19:14; 1 Corinthians 5:7). He was in the grave during Unleavened Bread (Luke 23:54–56). He rose on Firstfruits (Leviticus 23:10–11; 1 Corinthians 15:20). He poured out the Spirit on Pentecost (Acts 2:1–4). The fall feasts point forward with the same precision. The trumpet of His return is described in 1 Thessalonians 4:16. The day of atonement and national repentance is shown in Zechariah 12:10. The tabernacle of God with men is mentioned in Revelation 21:3.

And they reveal love. The feasts are not cold rituals. They are God’s way of saying, “I want you to remember what I’ve done. Think about what I’m doing now. Consider what I will do in the future.” They are the story of Jesus written into time so that when He came, no one would miss Him. Jesus didn’t just fulfill the feasts—He lived them. He died on Passover, rested in the grave during Unleavened Bread, rose on Firstfruits, and sent the Spirit on Pentecost. He will return in the season of Trumpets, cleanse and judge at Atonement, and dwell with us at Tabernacles.

These are not Jewish traditions. They are the fingerprints of God.

When God commanded these feasts as “perpetual” (Exodus 12:14; Leviticus 23:14; Leviticus 23:21; Leviticus 23:31; Leviticus 23:41), He wasn’t preserving a cultural identity. He was preserving the gospel. He was preserving the story of His Son.

If the Church Filled Its Calendar With God’s Feasts, It Wouldn’t Need Filler Seasons to Pretend It’s Alive

But imagine if the church calendar wasn’t built around man‑made festivals at all. Imagine if it was built around the feasts of the Lord. These are the appointments God Himself established. This is the rhythm He wrote into creation. It is the story He embedded into time. If the church filled its year with the feasts of the Lord, it wouldn’t need to manufacture spiritual excitement. It wouldn’t need to create artificial seasons to feel alive. It wouldn’t need to borrow pagan imagery, rename it, and pretend it’s holy. It wouldn’t need to cling to Christmas and Easter like life support.

Because the feasts of the Lord don’t just fill a calendar—they tell the entire gospel from Genesis to Revelation. Not just the birth of Jesus. Not just the resurrection of Jesus. It includes the whole story: The Lamb was slain from the foundation of the world. The blood saves. There is deliverance from bondage. The burial of the old life happens. The resurrection of the new occurs. The Spirit is poured out. The trumpet announces His return. The day of atonement is when every wrong is made right. The tabernacle of God dwells with man forever.

A calendar built by God, not by bishops. A rhythm established by Scripture, not by councils. A story fulfilled by Christ, not by tradition.

When the church embraces the feasts of the Lord, it doesn’t need to pretend to be alive. It becomes alive. It becomes rooted. It becomes anchored. It becomes biblical. It becomes prophetic. It becomes Christ‑centered in a way Christmas and Easter never could. The feasts don’t just celebrate moments—they reveal the entire mission.

The Church Doesn’t Need Easter—It Needs to Return to What God Established

The early church didn’t need Christmas or Easter to feel alive. They had Christ. They had the Spirit. They had the mission. They had the fellowship of the saints. They had the breaking of bread. They had the apostles’ teaching. They had prayer. They had power.

We have two festivals and a lot of noise.

The modern church clings to Christmas and Easter. Without these traditions, it would have to face the truth: it has forgotten how to be the church.