We—through the Holy Days of God—are able to get a sense of what God has done and will do in His dealings with mankind. I am struck by something Jesus said about His own anticipation in fulfilling the Passover meal with His disciples:
“Then He said to them, ‘With fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer…’” (Luke 22:15).
Knowing explicitly that He would suffer during the hours following this Passover and die, Jesus nonetheless focused on the bigger picture, for He understood that His actions would open up salvation to the world. This had been His message from the start of His earthly ministry:
“‘For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved’” (John 3:15-17).
But there is more to what Jesus revealed, and this has to do very directly with the Feast of Tabernacles—a time that pictures His return and the establishment of the Kingdom of God on earth. Recall that Jesus taught that we should pray, “‘Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven’” (Matthew 6:10).
Note how Jesus also emphasized another event during that Passover with His disciples and this one will take place in the future:
“‘[F]or I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God’” (Luke 22:16); “‘for I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes’” (Luke 22:18).
There is a time ahead when the reality of what we are about to observe at the Feast of Tabernacles will come! Indeed, all that Jesus Christ spoke of will be fulfilled!
As we keep this year’s Feast of Tabernacles and Last Great Day, let us also do so with fervent desire for the ultimate fulfillment of God’s marvelous plan—eternal life in the Family of God!
