Bible Study Course: Lesson 12 - God's Festivals: Keys to Humanity's Future
The Last Great Day
What is God's seventh and last annual festival?
"Also on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when you have gathered
in the fruit of the land, you shall keep the feast of the LORD for seven days;
on the first day there shall be a sabbath-rest, and on the eighth day a sabbath-rest"
(Leviticus 23:39).
"Also day by day, from the first day until the last day, [Ezra] read
from the Book of the Law of God. And they kept the feast seven days; and
on the eighth day there was a sacred assembly, according to the prescribed manner"
(Nehemiah 8:18).
The seven days of the Feast of Tabernacles are followed by another high day,
on which God commands an assembly. This eighth day is the Last Great
Day of the fall festival season, and it represents the final, or seventh,
step in God's plan of salvation.
As Christ's 1,000-year reign on earth (Revelation 20:4) is followed by other
prophesied events, the Feast of Tabernacles is also followed by a concluding
festival that represents the conclusion of those final events—the final aspects
of God's purpose and plan for humanity on our physical earth. The book of Revelation
reveals that all people who have ever died without hearing of Christ or learning
God's way of life are to be resurrected and given their opportunity to receive
eternal life. This brings us to the concluding aspects of God's plan.
John writes: "And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God,
and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life.
And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were
written in the books. The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and
Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one
according to his works. Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire.
This is the second death. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was
cast into the lake of fire" (Revelation 20:12-15).
This is the resurrection of "the rest of the dead [who] did not live
again until the thousand years were finished" mentioned in Revelation 20:5.
This resurrection of many millions of people back to physical, perishable life
is graphically depicted in Ezekiel 37:1-12. In this resurrection, according
to Jesus, the dead of all past ages—people such as the queen of the South (or
Sheba) from Solomon's time, the inhabitants of the ancient Assyrian stronghold
of Nineveh from Jonah's time and the people of Christ's time—will all be resurrected
together (Matthew 12:41-42).
This judgment will take place over time as these people hear and learn God's
truth for the first time. Those who rise in this resurrection and repent—and
the Scriptures indicate that most of them will repent—will receive God's Spirit.
"Then you ... will know that I am the LORD, when I open your graves and
bring you up from them. I will put my Spirit in you and you will live
... Then you will know that I the LORD have spoken, and I have done it, declares
the LORD" (Ezekiel 37:13-14, NIV). In this resurrection God will give them
their opportunity for salvation—an opportunity they never had before.
Did Jesus speak of a connection between the Last Great Day and the
receiving of God's Spirit?
"On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried
out, saying, 'If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink. He who believes
in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living
water.' But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, [which] those believing in
Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was
not yet glorified" (John 7:37-39).
Most people cling to the notion that God sends those who die unsaved to an
ever-burning hell to be tormented forever. This is one of the great deceptions
Satan has foisted off on mankind. It is simply not true. Instead, the Scriptures
consistently teach that each person who dies remains in his grave, having no
consciousness or pain (Ecclesiastes 9:5; Psalm 6:5) until God resurrects him.
(For detailed proof be sure to request the booklets Heaven
and Hell: What Does the Bible Really Teach? and What
Happens After Death?)
Jesus explained that everyone who dies will be resurrected from his grave,
not from an ever-burning hell: "Do not marvel at this; for an hour is coming,
in which all who are in the tombs ['graves' in most translations] shall
hear His voice, and shall come forth; those who did the good deeds to a resurrection
of life, those who committed the evil deeds to a resurrection of judgment"
(John 5:28-29, New American Standard Bible). Some translators incorrectly render
this event as a "resurrection of condemnation." Such translation does
not accurately reflect what the Scriptures teach.
Humanity's final judgment, according to the Scriptures, will not be in the
form of a resurrection to automatic condemnation. Rather it will be the time
when those who have never heard God's truth explained will finally receive an
opportunity to hear and repent—by being resurrected and taught God's truth over
a generously sufficient length of time to come to repentance and prove to God
they really want eternal life and are willing to submit to Him.
Through God's wondrous foresight, all people will enjoy the opportunity to
learn His truth and come to repentance, because God "desires all men to
be saved" (1 Timothy 2:4). God will forgive those who repent (the biblical
indications are that most will repent) and give them His Spirit and ultimately
salvation in His Kingdom. Remember, "the Lord is ... not willing that any
should perish but that all should come to repentance" (2 Peter 3:9). He
provides for everyone to have a genuine personal opportunity to have his name
written in the book of life.
Finally, this time of judgment will conclude when the incorrigibly wicked—those
who, after receiving their opportunity to repent, still refuse to accept God's
ways—are cast into the lake of fire (Revelation 20:14-15).
What do the Scriptures describe as the conclusion of this final judgment
period?
"Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and
the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea. Then I, John, saw
the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as
a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying,
'Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and
they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them and be their God. And
God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death,
nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have
passed away" (Revelation 21:1-4).
What follows in Revelation 21-22 briefly describes the community of those
who have received salvation living peacefully and harmoniously with each other
in the presence of God for eternity. In His wonderful Kingdom God will reveal
the meaning of His promise, "Behold, I make all things new" (Revelation
21:5).
God's festivals celebrate the seven stages of His wonderful, all-encompassing
plan so we can have faith in Him and rest assured that He knows what He is doing.
He has thought out every detail to bring us—all who are willing —to repentance
and give us eternal life.
By keeping His festivals we remain focused on what is important in our view
of the future and our role in it. Each time we keep them we deepen our understanding
of prophecies throughout the Bible that fill in the details of God's wonderful
plan.
Members of the United Church of God, publishers of this Bible Study Course,
gather every year in dozens of locations around the world in obedience to God's
command to observe the Feast of Tabernacles. In addition, they keep God's other
annual festivals in their local congregations. Visitors are always welcome.
In this lesson we cover only the highlights of what the Bible reveals about
God's Holy Days and their relationship to biblical prophecy. For more information
about God's festivals be sure to request and study our 64-page booklet God's
Holy Day Plan: The Promise of Hope for All Mankind. For a more-thorough
understanding of God's plan as revealed in Bible prophecy, also request the
booklets Are We Living in the Time of the
End?, You Can Understand Bible Prophecy
and The Book of Revelation Unveiled.
All will add to your understanding of God's festivals and their relationship
to His plan and to the prophecies that reveal many of its details.
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