So, why don’t New Testament believers continue to celebrate these Old Testament festivals? After all, the Feast of Unleavened Bread commemorated the way God delivered His people of Egypt – surely that’s still worth remembering. And why shouldn’t we celebrate both the beginning and the end of the harvest that God provides for us every year?

Well, as Paul pointed out in Colossians 2:17, these festivals were actually pointing forward to the life and ministry of Christ. Jesus is, after all, the Passover Lamb whose blood causes God to forgive the sins of all His people. And it was on the Feast of the Firstfruits, also called Pentecost, that God began to gather in a great harvest of souls, drawing people from every tribe and tongue into His kingdom (see Acts 2:1, 41). Furthermore, many scholars believe that Jesus was actually born at the season of the Feast of the Ingathering, or the Feast of Tabernacles – thus demonstrating that in Christ, God has pitched His tent among us, living with us as one of us.

So, while there’s no longer a need to observe rituals that looked forward to the coming of Christ, the Church still celebrates the great truths to which the Old Testament festivals pointed, although in different ways. Instead of Passover, the feast of Easter now commemorates not only the death but also the resurrection of Christ: not only our forgiveness but also our new life with Him. On Pentecost we celebrate the outpouring of the Holy Spirit even as we dedicate ourselves to spreading the good news of Jesus to everyone. And in America, the harvest festival that begins with Thanksgiving leads to a whole month of celebrations of the coming of Christ, culminating in Christmas Day.

So, yes, there’s lots of work we need to do to advance the Kingdom of God. But God also wants all His people to take some time off, to gather and celebrate what He has already done for us. So let’s do that, not only on Easter and Pentecost and during the Christmas season, but every time we celebrate the Lord’s Supper, indeed on every Lord’s Day.

Exodus 23:13-17 (NASB)

13 “Now concerning everything which I have said to you, be on your guard; and do not mention the name of other gods, nor let them be heard from your mouth.
14 “Three times a year you shall celebrate a feast to Me.
15 “You shall observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread; for seven days you are to eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the appointed time in the month Abib, for in it you came out of Egypt. And none shall appear before Me empty-handed.
16 “Also you shall observe the Feast of the Harvest of the first fruits of your labors from what you sow in the field; also the Feast of the Ingathering at the end of the year when you gather in the fruit of your labors from the field.
17 “Three times a year all your males shall appear before the Lord God.