A Year of Worship: The Christian Calendar

A Cycle of Light,= A Cycle of Life: The Christian Calendar

Dr Alex Tang<= /p>

Summary

We all mark time in various= ways: birthdays, anniversaries or cultural festivals. The Old Testament Israelites have their religious festivals. Christians too have a way to mark time: the Christian calendar. We should return to our roots and use the Christian calendar to m= ark time with Jesus.

1. Introduction: Marking Time=

Do you get the feeling that= time is moving faster and faster? Didn’t we just finish Christmas? And now it= is coming to the end of January. How do we mark time? We all mark time with the minutes and hours by our watch, and the days by our calendars. Our calendars show us the months. We used to have paper calendars but now they are electr= onic on our PDA and computers. They even beep to remind us of important appointments. What other ways do we mark time?

Birthdays
Anniversaries
School days and school holidays especially the ex= am period
Festivals: Chinese New Year
Payday
Annual and performance bonus days
Family events: birth, death, children graduating<= /li>
Vacation time

We often mark time in relat= ion to what is important to us. How many days to our payday? How many days until school ends and the holidays begin? How many days to the examinations? We normally mark time to something that is coming than time for something happening. We normally mark time around events. If we examine the way we ma= rk time we will discover what is really important to us (not what we say is important) and what our lives revolve around.

2. The Jewish Way of Keeping Time: Relig= ious Festivals

God knows how important mar= king time is. So he gave the Old Testament Israelites a way to mark time – religious festivals. These religious festivals were related to Temple worship. And temple worship remi= nded the people of Yahweh, their God. Hence their whole year revolved round their religious festivals. There were daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly festival= s, and great stress was laid on the regular observance of them in every partic= ular one. During three major festivals or feasts, every male in the family have = to go to Jerusalem. This meant planning for the journey. So the ancient Israelites mark time by remembering how many days to the Feast of the Tabernacles or how long were after Pentecost.

(1.) The regular festivals were,

(a) The weekly Sabbath (Lev. 23:1–3; Ex. 16:23–29; 20:8–11; 31:12, etc.).

(b) The seventh new moon, or= the feast of Trumpets (Num. 28:11–15; 29:1–6).

(d) The year of jubilee (Lev. 25:8–16; 27:16–25).

(2.) The great feasts were,

&nbs= p; (a) The Passover.

&nbs= p; (b) The feast of Pentecost (of weeks).

&nbs= p; (c) The feast of Tabernacles (of ingathering).

On each of these occasions = every male Israelite was commanded “to appear before the Lord” (Deut. 27:7; Neh. 8:9–12). The promise that God would protect their homes (E= x. 34:23, 24) while all the males were absent in Jerusalem at these feasts was always fulfilled.

“During the whole per= iod between Moses and Christ we never read of an enemy invading the land at the time of the three festivals. The first instance on record is thirty-three y= ears after they had withdrawn from themselves the divine protection by imbruing their hands in the Saviour’s blood, when Cestius, the Roman general, = slew fifty of the people of Lydda while all the rest had gone up to the feast of Tabernacles, A.D. 66.”

These festivals, besides th= eir religious purpose, had an important bearing on the maintenance among the pe= ople of the feeling of a national unity. The times fixed for their observance we= re arranged so as to interfere as little as possible with the industry of the people.

(a)The Pas= sover was kept just before the harvest commenced,

(b)Penteco= st at the conclusion of the corn harvest and before the vintage,

(c)the fea= st of Tabernacles after all the fruits of the ground had been gathered in.

(3.) The Day of Atonement

The tenth day of the sevent= h month (Lev. 16:1, 34; 23:26–32; Num. 29:7–11). The great annual day of humiliation and expiation for the sins of the nation, “the fast” (Acts 27:9), and the only one commanded in the law of Moses. It was kept on= the tenth day of the month Tisri, i.e., five days before the feast of Tabernacl= es, and lasted from sunset to sunset.

In the Old Testament, the c= oncept of sacred time became a vehicle for teaching the faith (for example, Exodus 12-13).

3. The Christian Way of Keeping Time: The Christian Calendar

When we think of the Christ= ian church year, most of us think only of Christmas and Easter. We joke about s= ome Christians as CEO Christians. They attend church on Christmas and Easter On= ly. The observance of the seasons of the church year has a long history in the = life of the Christian Faith. When most of the people in the church were poor and= had no access to education, the church festivals and the cycle of the church ye= ar provided a vehicle for teaching the story of God and his actions in human history. Planned and purposeful observance of the Christian seasons and festivals can become an important tool for education and discipleship in the Faith, as well as a vehicle for spiritual growth and vitality. Now, before = you shut your mind and think of the Christian calendar as only a Catholic calen= dar, let me introduce you to some protestant churches that follow the calendar:<= /p>

Anglican/Episcopal
Lutheran
Methodism
Anabaptism
Presbyterians

As a congregation moves thr= ough the church calendar, they are presented in an organized way with the opportunit= y to talk about, reflect upon, and respond to the entire range of faith confessi= ons that lie at the heart of the Christian Faith. This is important, not only f= or the vitality of the whole community, but especially for children to become aware in the context of community celebration those things that are importa= nt to their Faith (Deut 6:20-25).

The Christian calendar is o= rganized around two major centers of Sacred Time: A cycle of Light: Advent, Christma= s, and Epiphany; and a cycle of life: Lent, Holy Week, and Easter, concluding = at Pentecost. The rest of the year following Pentecost is known as Ordinary Ti= me, from the word "ordinal," which simply means counted time (First Sunday after Pentecost, etc.). Ordinary Time is used to focus on various aspects of the Faith, especially the mission of the church in the world.

(1) A Cycle of Light (Advent, Christmas, Epiphany)

Season/Celebration

Period/Date

Purpose Theme

Season of Adv= ent (Dec 3 - Dec 24, 2006)

Advent (coming)

4 Sundays.

Christ's first and second coming- thanksgiving and anticipation.

[Repent and be ready for the second coming of the Lo= rd. Allow for the Messiah to be birthed in your heart.]

Season of Chr= istmas (Dec 25, 2006 - Jan 5, 2007)

Nativity of the Lord

Christmas day

25th December

The Twelve Days of Christmas (Dec 25, 2006 - Jan 5, = 2007)

Celebration of Christ's birth

The Incarnation

[Embrace the incarnation. Let Christ be born within = you in a new way]

The Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates Epiphany on January 6th rather than Christmas. Historically, the celebration of Christ's birth on December 25th started after the conversion= of the Roman emperor Constantine at the beginning of the 4th century AD. During his reign, the traditional pagan festival which took place at the winter equinox in celebration of the sun god was replaced by the commemoration of = the birth of Christ. Christmas is not a pagan festival but the Christian festiv= al that replaced it. It is unlikely that December 25th accurately reflects the birth of Christ which is generally thought to be around springtime in the Western hemisphere (March-April). Practically it would be difficult to celebrate both Christ's birth and death at the same time.

Season of Epi= phany (Ordinary Time) (Jan 6 - Feb 20, 2007)

Epiphany of the Lord

After Epiphany

(Jan 6 2007)

(Jan 7- Feb 20) About 8 weeks

God manifest in Christ. The manifestation of Christ = as a savior, not only to the Jews but to all of mankind.

[make commitment for Christ to be manifested in your= life]

Baptism of the Lord

Signs and wonders

Transfiguration: The glory of the Lord revealed.

Christ in his ministry as he manifest to all that he= is the Son of God.

[learn to manifest Christ through the witness of lif= e and deeds]

(2) A Cycle of Life (Lent, Holy Week, Eas= ter, Pentecost)

Season of Len= t (Feb 21 - April 7, 2007)

Lent (spring)

Ash Wednesday

Passion Week/Holy Week

Palm Sunday

Maundy Thursday

Good Friday

40 weekdays

First day of Lent (Feb 21, 2007

(April 1 – 6 , 2007)

The Sunday before Easter

Thursday before Easter

(April 5, 2007)

Friday before Easter (April 6, 2007)

A time to travel with Jesus toward his death. Althou= gh under constant attacks, he ministers to the crowd.

[Time for Repentance]

The suffering of Christ

[Lent is a time for repentance through self-examinat= ion and renewal through identification with the journey of Jesus. A time for prayer, fasting and almsgiving]

Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem

The Last Supper, Gethsemane, betrayal, arrest and trial

The Crucifixion-death of Christ

Season of Eas= ter (April 9-May 27, 2007)

Easter Virgil

Easter Day

Ascension Day

Day of Pentecost

(April 8, 2007)

Sixth Sunday of Easter

(May 27, 2007)

Resurrection of the Lord

The ascension of Christ

The coming of the Holy Spirit

Season After = Pentecost (Ordinary Times) (May 28 - December 1, 2007)

After Pentecost

Trinity Sunday

Reign of Christ or Christ the King

About 25 weeks

First Sunday after Pentecost

Last Sunday after Pentecost

Celebration of the coming of the Holy Spirit/Birth o= f the Church. Time to embrace the teaching of the church.

Celebration of the Trinity

Celebrating Christ the King

The importance of the Churc= h calendar is that it provides a coherent way of telling the Christian story throughout the year in a way that reinforces what we believes and provides opportunity= to proclaiming these truths to others.

4. Lessons for us

(1) Remembering the Life of Christ our Lo= rd

Col. 2:6

So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live in him, 7 rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, a= nd overflowing with thankfulness.

How do we know God?

· Creation

· Word

· Jesus Christ

Jesus Christ is the incarna= te God. What this means is that God became a human being. We cannot see God who is spirit and invisible. We can see his handiwork which is creation. For God himself, we can look at Jesus and see him. That is why the gospels are so precious because the gospels gave us a lot of details about the life of Jes= us Christ. As we study the life of Christ, we come to know God himself. And wh= at is more wonderful is that as we immerse ourselves in the life of Christ, we become one with him, being given a taste of his divine name.

Have you ever being so engr= ossed in a movie, so identified with the main character that you flinch when he or s= he get hurt and feel pain when his or her heart was broken?

That is what entering into = the life of Christ entails. It is being identified with Christ in his life and death= .

Martin Luther wrote,

“In his life Christ i= s an example, showing us how to live;

In his death he is sacrific= e, satisfying our sins;

In his resurrection, a conq= ueror;

In his ascension, a king;

In his intercession, a high priest.”

The Christian calendar take= s us through the life of Christ once a year. You know what they say about acquir= ing a skill? Repetition, repetition, repetition. So being repetitively involved= in the life of Christ makes us Christlike.

(2) Refocusing on the Work of Christ our = Lord (The Eighth Day)

How many days are there in = a week? 7 days or 8 days? God created the work in six days and he rested on the seventh. Then on Sunday, on the eighth day, Jesus was resurrected and God b= egan his work of re-creation. So there are 8 days in a week and we are in the 8<= sup>th day. The Christian calendar reminds us that we are working together with Go= d in a mission to redeem creation. That is our calling and purpose. There is a s= ix month period after Pentecost called ordinary times. This is the period to remind us of the work of the church. This is the period of our work with Go= d.

2 Cor. 4: 4-6

4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot s= ee the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 5 = For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus' sake. 6 For God, who said, "Let light shine out of darkness," made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of = the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.

Being focused on the life r= eminds us of his mission. Christ is here on the eighth day to redeem a fallen creation. There is a new word being used nowadays- MISSIONAL. What is means= is to align your mind, your heart and your life to God’s purpose. God’s purpose is to redeem his fallen creation. The word comes out of= the emergent/emerging church movement. This is a group of Christians who is reexamining how to ‘do church’ and ‘be church’ in t= he 21^st century in the midst of iPod, Internet, mp3, post modern and interconnected digital world.

(3) Recentering the Worship of Christ our Lord<= /o:p>

Phil 3:8-11

8 What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness = of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I cons= ider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ 9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. 10 I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, someh= ow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.

We need to be reminded agai= n and again that Christ is our center. Christ is our center because he is the fulfillment of all the promises made to us by God. He is the head of the church. Another metaphor is that the church is the body of Christ. As such,= we need to continually refocus on him who deserves to be worshipped. We have a tendency to stray, to follow after false gods.

Conclusion

· Rem= ember the Life of Christ our Lord

· Ref= ocus on the Work of Christ our Lord

· Rec= enter our Worship of Christ our Lord

Soli Deo Gloria