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Observe the Biblical Calendar with Us!
Manifest International affiliates follow the Biblical Calendar through the course of the year as a tool for meditating on significant events of Scripture in any given month and what God may be revealing for our daily lives today. If you want to join us, subscribe and you will receive an email on the first day of each Biblical month.
Significant Dates This Year 2024-2025
Why Observe the Biblical Calendar?
Jesus instructed His disciples to always be alert and discerning of the times. Walking with God through His calendar each year is one way of doing this. Here are some reasons why we believe it is important.
1. Jesus is coming back.
When Jesus returns, it will be according to the Biblical calendar, not according to the calendar of this world or any man-made dates of religious observances for significant events or holidays. God is not a God of coincidence but of precision. God's appointed times are everlasting ordinances for all generations. He established His calendar and reveals Himself to us through it.
Changing the times is a deliberate scheme of those opposed to God. (Consider Daniel 7:25.) Moreover, Jesus rebuked those who did not have discernment of their times. (See Luke 12:54-56.) Therefore, we seek to stay in step with God and His times through Biblical understanding. For more on the calendar, click here.
2. Biblical Feasts are a shadow of Messiah.
Jesus observed the feasts of the Lord out of His own perfect obedience to the Law of God. He also looked forward to the ultimate fulfillment of the feasts through His life, death, resurrection, and return to usher in the age to come. Each one of the Biblical Feasts reveals certain aspects of who Jesus is, what He accomplished for us, and what will come to pass upon His return.
These feasts were originally designed by God to keep Israel focused on Him, to help them remember all He has done for them, and to train them in the ways of true and proper worship. They can do the same for us if we take note of them in our lives today.
3. Alignment with God's times and celebrations. Not Pagan. Not Law. Not Traditions of Men.
It is unfortunate that through the centuries, the dates and customs of Christian holidays have badly strayed and been cut off from their Biblical foundation. This has resulted in modern observances of "Christian" holidays that are more rooted in pagan festivals than Biblical truth. At the same time, the Hebrew calendar observed by Jewish people has also departed from Biblical accuracy towards rabbinic teaching and Jewish tradition. Therefore, instead of paganism, legalism, or tradition, we look to the Word of God for what He reveals through Scripture about His appointed times and their Biblical meaning and significance.
Under the New Covenant, we are not subject to the legal requirements for observing the Feasts of the Lord or the Biblical months. As such, followers of Jesus today can observe these Biblical Feasts or not however the Lord leads them. (See Galatians 4:10; Colossians 2:16.)
More Background Information on the Calendar
And God said, "Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years... - Genesis 1:14
God has a calendar. From the beginning in the Book of Genesis, He put the sun, moon, and stars in place to mark His appointed times for the seasons, days, and years. God knows the end from the beginning and His calendar marks time according to His eternal plan.
Coinciding events of history are not a coincidence. Therefore, we consider the events that took place in the Bible in each month of the year to consider what God may be asking us to reflect on in our daily lives as we walk with Him.
The calendar used in the world today is known as the “Gregorian Calendar,” named after Pope Gregory XIII in the 1500’s. The roots of Gregory’s calendar are from ancient Rome, who adopted theirs from Greece, who mimicked the ancient Egyptian solar calendar in worship of the god of the sun. Moreover, the days of the week and months of this calendar are named after pagan gods.
In contrast, the calendar for God’s people is a lunar calendar. Therefore:
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Days begin in the evening when the sun goes down, as it is stated in Genesis as God created the world in six days, “there was evening and morning, the -- day.”
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Days of the week are numbered, except for the Sabbath which is the seventh day, God’s appointed day of rest.
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Months are observed in tandem with the cycle of the new moon.
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Months were mostly numbered until the days of Israel’s exile in Babylon. After the people returned from exile, the months had names rather than numbers, and some of the names are Babylonian in origin.
Instead of a 365-day year, the Biblical calendar is more like a 19-year cycle with leap years in year 0, 3, 6, 8, 11, 14, and 17. Instead of a straight line, picture it like a helix rotating through cycles of history and resetting every 19 years.
Significantly, God’s calendar for His people started with redemption. In no uncertain terms, He told them that this was the beginning of the year for them. (See Exodus 12:2.) Within two weeks from the first of the year, God’s people were delivered from 400 years of slavery. They miraculously walked through the parted waters of the Red Sea and were birthed as a nation. Every year, Passover is celebrated to remember this marvelous event.
It is not a coincidence that Jesus Christ was crucified on the exact anniversary of the day of Passover over 1,000 years later. Through the coinciding time on the calendar, God was revealing a message of His redemption through Jesus Christ, His Son. He is our eternal Passover Lamb who delivers us from bondage to sin and death. There are many additional examples of this throughout the year.
In the Scriptures, God commands His people to observe the months/new moons and His appointed times. (Numbers 10:10, 28:11; Leviticus 23.) These are referred to as the Feasts of the Lord and we will be celebrating some of them for eternity in the world to come.
Even though through faith in Jesus Christ we are no longer under the Law, if God considers a time to be special, holy, or appointed, it is wise for us to take note of it and be in step with Him. Therefore, our aim is simply to show reverence to the only God who created the Universe and who is the author of time.
Note: We are not suggesting that we abandon the Gregorian calendar because that is simply impractical for living in this world.
Note: We are not promoting the Rabbinic myths associated with the Hebrew months because unfortunately, these myths do not accurately represent the historical events of Scripture.