Fall Feasts
God was faithful then. He is faithful now. And He will be faithful again.
In Fall Feasts, Lead Pastor Ben Miller returns from sabbatical with a timely message about remembering God’s faithfulness, returning to His Word, and preparing our hearts for what Scripture says is still ahead.
Through the biblical Fall Feasts and Nehemiah 8 through 12, discover how remembering what God has already done can restore faith for your future, why repentance leads us back into alignment with Him, and how the Fall Feasts point us toward the return of Jesus. God knows how easily we forget.
Throughout Scripture, He gave His people rhythms of remembrance so they could look back at what He had done and look forward with faith to what He promised to do.
Exodus 12:14 calls God’s people to remember from generation to generation. The biblical feasts were not empty traditions. They pointed backward to God’s faithfulness and forward to His unfolding plan.
The spring feasts point us to what Jesus has already accomplished: Freedom from sin and slavery, resurrection into new life, the New Covenant, and the gift of the Holy Spirit. The Biblical Fall Feasts point us forward: • Feast of Trumpets: Jesus will return. • Day of Atonement: Jesus will judge sin and make things right. • Feast of Tabernacles: Jesus will gather His people and dwell among them.
From there, Nehemiah 8 through 12 gives us a practical picture of how God’s people respond.
1. READ AND REMEMBER
Nehemiah 8:2-3 shows Ezra reading God’s Word to the entire community, and Nehemiah 8:8 says they clearly explained it so the people could understand. We do not read Scripture just to say we read it. We read to understand, obey, and bring our lives back into alignment with God. • Read the Word. • Remember what God has done. • Retell the story. • Remember His faithfulness. Sometimes the faith you need for tomorrow begins by remembering what God already did yesterday.
2. CONFESS, SEPARATE, AND WORSHIP
Nehemiah 9:1-3 describes the people fasting, confessing their sins, separating themselves from practices that opposed God, and worshiping Him. That same invitation is still powerful today: • God, what in my life is not pleasing to You? • What has gotten into my home, my phone, my habits, my speech, or my thinking that is pulling me away from You? Repentance is not about running from God. It is about returning to the God who still loves us and wants to cleanse, restore, and realign our lives.
3. MAKE A FRESH COMMITMENT
Nehemiah 9:38 says the people responded to everything they remembered by making a solemn promise. In Nehemiah 10, they recommitted themselves to: • Read and obey God’s Word. • Live righteously. • Raise their children according to God’s Word. • Honor the Sabbath and practice forgiveness. • Be faithful in gathering with God’s people. • Bring the first part of their harvest into God’s house. • Serve in God’s house. • Make praise and worship a lifestyle. Remembering God’s faithfulness should lead somewhere. It should move us into fresh obedience.
4. PUT GOD BACK IN HIS RIGHTFUL PLACE
Over time, we can slowly put ourselves back on the throne of our lives. Worship reminds us who belongs there. • God is God. • We are His people. • Our lives belong to Him. Nehemiah 12:43 says God gave the people cause for great joy, and their joy could be heard from far away. When they remembered God’s faithfulness, returned to His Word, repented, and recommitted themselves to Him, JOY RETURNED TO THE HOUSE.
KEY TAKEAWAY: • God was faithful then. • He is faithful now. • He will be faithful again. The Fall Feasts remind us to remember what God has done, return to Him with our whole hearts, and prepare for what He has promised to do next.
CALL TO ACTION: Read Nehemiah 8 through 12 this week and ask the Holy Spirit: • What do I need to remember? • What do I need to confess? • What needs to be removed or realigned? • Where is God asking me for a fresh commitment? • Then respond with your life.
