Should Christians Keep Feasts?
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The simple answer to this is no. Paul scolded the Galatian Gentiles for wanting to take up with Israel’s festival days and sabbatical periods (which pertained only to those Israelites who lived in the Land of Canaan, Galatians 4:10). Paul criticized the Roman Gentiles for feeling that special days had to be kept to honor God (Romans 14:1-6), but most especially, Paul said no one should judge Christians on matters of the weekly sabbaths, the new moons [which were the bedrock system for keeping the Mosaic calendar events] and the annual holydays (which includes Passover, Colossians 2:16-17).
There was a theological reason why Christians are not required to observe any of the Old Testament rituals today no matter how entertaining they may be to the observers or how good they are for instruction in righteousness. Something occurred with Paul and others about A.D. 63 that gave them even more teaching from Christ on the legal position of Christians in the eyes of Christ and the Father. It is called the teaching of "the Mystery" which he spoke about in the epistles of Ephesians and Colossians.
Here are the principles that Paul finally realized as the legal position of all Christians in the eyes of the Father. Paul told Christians:
Christians are now above this world in rank and are reigning on that same heavenly throne (in a legal sense) because they are still "in Christ." "And has raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenlies in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:6 Greek).
In a word, the Father now reckons Christ Jesus to have been a substitute for all Christians from before the foundation of the world and for all future time.
And as for the past, Christ lived a substitutionary life for Christians and what he accomplished in good works and performing necessary rituals has now been awarded to all Christians as equally belonging to them (legally). This means that the Father now looks on Christians as already having kept his commandments perfectly (when Christ did), that all Christians have died with Christ (when Christ died), that all Christians are reckoned (legally) to have been resurrected with Christ (when Christ was resurrected almost 2000 years ago), and that all Christians have passed the judgment (as Christ did) and that all Christians now sit on the very throne of Christ which is located at the right hand of the Father in heaven (because that is where Christ is and all Christians are reckoned to be "in Christ"). This is the legal position of all Christians as revealed to Paul and others when "the Mystery" was disclosed to them about A.D. 63.
In summary, all Christians (legally) have already made it into the very Kingdom and Salvation of God by being attached to Christ. Christians have died to this world, and they have been reckoned as already having kept all commandments, all rituals (including sabbaths, holydays, new moons, etc.), all the requirements of God when Christ kept them perfectly (because Christians were then "in Christ"). This is why Paul in Colossians told Christians not to be concerned about any ritualistic observances of Moses or those of anyone else, because all Christians are in Christ and they have passed those early stages of religious development and requirements. They have left all the requirements that God ever gave in a ritualistic sense for people to observe on earth.
Christians now (even though they are in the flesh until their resurrections from the dead) are reckoned by the Father to be in a heavenly environment (Colossians 3:1-2). They are no longer reckoned as Israelites, as Jews or even as Gentiles (Colossians 3:10-11). They are now accounted as being a part of the divine Family of God. Sabbaths, holydays and rituals are not necessary in that Family. (John 5:17-18).
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