Introduction
The biblical feasts are a joy to keep. An absolute joy. And if you’re like me, celebrating them brings you an even greater sense of purpose in your walk with Mashiach. But let’s be honest, they’re very much tailored to a specific region of the world: the land of Israel. While none of us in the dispersion can keep them perfectly, there are parts of the world where it’s even more difficult.
That would be the southern hemisphere.
As you probably know already, the feasts (moedim) of our Creator are agriculturally based. Their timing always coincides with a certain harvest. Thinking about this made me wonder: what if your harvest time is half a year different from Israel? What if you live in South Africa? Or Argentina? Or Australia? In a place where the seasons are reversed, are the feasts of Yah also altered?
The Short Answer Is…
No. Everyone across the earth keeps them at the same time. Even though it may feel strange to keep a harvest festival (the Feast of Tabernacles) at a time and place where the weather is just warming up; we, as believers in Mashiach, are also warming up — warming up for the kingdom, that is. Keeping the feasts is our rehearsal for a life to come. The curtains are about to go up, but they haven’t yet. Not quite.
I’ll explain.
A Shadow Of The Future
Colossians 2:16-17 — 16 Let no one therefore judge you in eating or in drinking, or in respect of a festival or a new moon or Sabbaths – 17 which are a shadow of what is to come – but the Body of the Messiah. (The Scriptures)
Paul was speaking of something profound. He knew the feasts and sabbaths weren’t going away. He actually believed quite the opposite: that they would only increase in their importance. Because if this age is the shadow, what will it be like when we reach the sun? Whoa now.
So what was Paul describing, exactly? I believe he was pulling from these two prophets: Isaiah and Zechariah.
Isaiah 66:22-23 — 22 “For as the new heavens and the new earth that I make stand before Me,” declares יהוה, “so your seed and your name shall stand. 23 “And it shall be that from New Moon to New Moon, and from Sabbath to Sabbath, all flesh shall come to worship before Me,” declares יהוה. (The Scriptures)
Zechariah 14:16-19 — 16 And it shall be that all who are left from all the gentiles which came up against Yerushalayim, shall go up from year to year to bow themselves to the Sovereign, יהוה of hosts, and to observe the Festival of Booths. 17 And it shall be, that if anyone of the clans of the earth does not come up to Yerushalayim to bow himself to the Sovereign, יהוה of hosts, on them there is to be no rain. 18 And if the clan of Mitsrayim does not come up and enter in, then there is no rain. On them is the plague with which יהוה plagues the gentiles who do not come up to observe the Festival of Booths. 19 This is the punishment of Mitsrayim and the punishment of all the gentiles that do not come up to observe the Festival of Booths. (The Scriptures)
In the future kingdom, all flesh will be journeying to Jerusalem. For the new moons. For the sabbaths. And particularly, it seems, for the Feast of Tabernacles. So assuming that there will be nations scattered across the entire earth, as there are today, I believe these scriptures are the answer we need.
When it comes to the feasts of our Creator, we’re all on the same clock. And not just for the new moons and feasts, but also the sabbaths. Which means wherever you may be, whether that’s the northern tip of Alaska or the jungles of Madagascar, we’re on the same calendar.
What we should be doing now is the same thing we’ll be doing in the future: look to Jerusalem. When the 1st lunar month arrives in Israel, it arrives in New Zealand too. After all, we’re one in Mashiach — are we not?
Though the real question is this: if all flesh will be journeying to Jerusalem on a regular basis… will we have flying cars by then?
Thank you so much for reading. And until next time… stay in that thin gate.
— Daniel A., Creator of ThinGate.org
