Understanding the Purposes of God’s Appointed Times
Table of contents
You’ve heard it said, “Timing is everything.” This is actually a biblical principle. God’s divinely appointed times are called ‘moeds’ in Hebrew. Observing them brings alignment and order into our lives. God’s timing IS everything…
So then, what exactly do you need to understand about the purposes of God’s appointed times?
Defining Covenant
To understand God’s appointed times, you must start with the foundational knowledge that you are in a covenant relationship with God through accepting Yeshua as your Lord and Savior. ‘Covenant’ is a term that confuses many, but it doesn’t have to.
Biblical covenant simply means that God has made an agreement with you, and you have made an agreement with God. It is not a legalistic term meant to bind you to oppressive obligations. Instead, it is a spiritually legal term that is established to honor God and to give you power and enablement to walk in the fullness of your salvation.
Covenant is often understood as a ‘contract,’ but this word alone is too narrow to fit its biblical nature. For this reason, it is important to think of a covenant in reference to a relationship because God is relational and faithful to His promises.
The prince of the world would have you believe that covenant is confining, restricting, and—in his craftiness—even self-serving. But this is not the principle behind a biblical covenant established by the Perfect One.
The God Who Keeps His Covenant
Nehemiah even refers to the name of God as “the God who keeps His covenant,” that is, He is a God who keeps His Word.
God cannot lie. Therefore, His Word is binding and legal in the spiritual realm. He operates according to His perfect governmental system established in the spirit.
Why Covenant is Difficult for Us to Understand
The problem many of us have is that we only know and have experience with worldly governmental systems. These systems are flawed. Therefore we don’t have a pure understanding of God’s covenant…
God’s is perfect. And His written Word is perfect. The way God has created and written covenantal language does not confine or restrict us but actually brings life, goodness, and prosperity.
This is what Jesus meant when He said, “I came to give you abundant life” (John 10:10).
When you have an encounter with the triune Lord during God’s appointed times, He reveals more and more about your spiritual inheritance and His covenant love.
Takeaway
Taking part in and understanding God’s appointed times leads to a deeper covenantal relationship with the Lord.
Our Part in the Covenant
We get to choose how we will interact with the Covenant-Keeping God. And, as co-heirs with Christ, we also get to partake in these divinely appointed times that are laid out in His covenant, which are intended to release blessings, equipping and empowering us to fulfill our divine destinies—according to what is written in the Heavenly books—and further His Kingdom on earth.
Takeaway
We don’t have to partake in God’s appointed times. However, when we do, He promises that blessings are released.
Understanding the Covenant Shapes Your Desires to Align with God’s
When we have covenant understanding, we have a desire to live according to the Word, which includes honoring His timing.
Within the covenant relationship, we…
- Worship and praise Him
- Seek His face
- Are in constant communication with Him through prayer
- Walk out our faith with confidence and love
- Honor Him in all we do
God’s Appointed Times Are a Framework for Us
Now, about His timing… Did you know that God has outlined a framework for us to operate in His timing? That’s right. God has created a pattern from which everything flows—historically and prophetically.
That pattern is revealed through the Jewish or Hebraic calendar—a lunar calendar that is punctuated with feasts and holy days to commemorate His covenant relationship with His people.
And within that calendar is a rhythm of repentance and renewal built into our days, weeks, months, and years.
Takeaway
Observing God’s appointed times are a way to worship Him. The appointed times are a framework that guides us into a cycle of repentance and renewal.
5 Purposes of God’s Appointed Time or ‘Moeds’
There are several purposes for which God’s appointed times, or ‘moeds,’ were established.
Purpose 1. To Remember What God Has Done and His Covenant Promises
In Exodus 13:3-10, Moses said to the people…
- “Remember this day in which you went out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out of this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. On this day you are going out, in the month Abib. And it shall be, when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Hivites and the Jebusites, which He swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, that you shall keep this service in this month. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days. And no leavened bread shall be seen among you, nor shall leaven be seen among you in all your quarters. And you shall tell your son in that day, saying, ‘This is done because of what the Lord did for me when I came up from Egypt.’ It shall be as a sign to you on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the Lord’s law may be in your mouth; for with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. You shall therefore keep this ordinance in its season from year to year.” (emphasis added)
Not only are we to remember Him, Isaiah 43:26 tells us that we are to be aware of and remember His covenant words by speaking them out to Him. This is not for God’s benefit but ours.
- “Put Me in remembrance; let us contend together; state your case, that you may be acquitted.”
Purpose 2. To Proclaim the Covenant and Come into Unity
In Leviticus 23, there are 2 words that come up again and again… “holy convocation.”
In Hebrew, the term holy convocation is ‘mikra kodesh,’ The root word of ‘mikra’ means reading or calling as in “What do they call you?” Again, covenant language is used here—calling on the name of the Covenant-Keeper.
In biblical times, the Torah was read publicly. News, laws, and announcements were proclaimed out loud in front of everyone. In English, the word ‘proclaim’ is translated from the same root word ‘mikra.’ In Hebrew, the word ‘announce’ and ‘proclaim’ are the same word.
One kind of announcement would be to assemble the people, God inviting His people to meet. Therefore, one purpose of a ‘moed’ is to assemble the people so they can meet with each other and God.
- “As soon as you come into the city, you will surely find him before he goes up to the high place to eat. For the people will not eat until he comes, because he must bless the sacrifice; afterward those who are invited will eat. Now therefore, go up, for about this time you will find him.”—1 Samuel 9:13
You read in Leviticus 23:1-2 that the purpose of assembling is to proclaim they are the Lord’s feasts.
- “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ‘Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: “The feasts of the Lord, which you shall proclaim to be holy convocations, these are My feasts.”’” (emphasis added)
So then, when we meet with Him and each other, we are to proclaim the purpose and covenant.
Purpose 3. To Release Blessings According to the Covenant
Psalm 23:5 tells us that God prepares a table before us in the presence of our enemies. He anoints our heads with oil and causes our cups to run over. This is the use of covenant language once again. This is a reference to the Passover table. Passover offers 9 blessings that anoint every area of our lives.
Exodus 23:20-30 lists the blessings, God’s instructions to Moses before the first Passover in Egypt.
The blessings are…
- Divine protection: “’Behold, I send an Angel before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared.’’” (vs. 20)
- Protection from enemies through positioning and alignment: “’But if you indeed obey His voice and do all that I speak, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries.’” (vs. 22)
- Commissioning of divine authority: “’You shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works; but you shall utterly overthrow them and completely break down their sacred pillars.’” (vs. 24)
- Supernatural health and kingdom prosperity: “’So you shall serve the Lord your God, and He will bless your bread and your water. And I will take sickness away from the midst of you.’” (vs. 25)
- Covenant protection for multiplication and longevity: “’No one shall suffer miscarriage or be barren in your land; I will fulfill the number of your days.’” (vs. 26)
- A godly release of fear and respect from enemies: “’I will send My fear before you, I will cause confusion among all the people to whom you come, and will make all your enemies turn their backs to you.’” (vs. 27)
- Relief from the threat of enemies: “’And I will send hornets before you, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite from before you.’” (vs. 28)
- The gift of dominion and an increased inheritance: “’Little by little I will drive them out from before you, until you have increased, and you inherit the land.’” (vs. 30)
- Freedom from corrupt covenants: “’They shall not dwell in your land, lest they make you sin against Me. For if you serve their gods, it will surely be a snare to you.’” (vs. 33)
When we assemble according to God’s calendar, by supernatural default, blessings are released.
Purpose 4. To Worship and Honor According to the Covenant
Years ago, God planted in the hearts of Curt and Christie Landry the desire to follow His calendar and ways. They did not know at the time what potential blessings would come. It was initially an emotion that pierced their hearts and opened their souls to new possibilities of worship.
Observing God’s appointed times taught them that honor is the currency of Heaven. When they honored God’s timing and ways, they were worshipping Him, believing His instruction was and is better than man’s.
Observing God’s appointed times was an act of humbly surrendering their will to His.
Zechariah 14:16, Ezekiel 46:9, 11, Numbers 10:10, and Psalm 42:4 tell us that one purpose of God’s appointed time is worship with gladness. This is why they are referred to as ‘festivals.’
- “And it shall come to pass that everyone who is left of all the nations which came against Jerusalem shall go up from year to year to worship the King, the Lord of hosts, and to keep the Feast of Tabernacles.”—Zechariah 14:16 (emphasis added)
- “But when the people of the land come before the Lord on the appointed feast days, whoever enters by way of the north gate to worship shall go out by way of the south gate; and whoever enters by way of the south gate shall go out by way of the north gate. He shall not return by way of the gate through which he came, but shall go out through the opposite gate.”—Ezekiel 46:9 (emphasis added)
- “Also in the day of your gladness, in your appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your months, you shall blow the trumpets over your burnt offerings and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings; and they shall be a memorial for you before your God: I am the Lord your God.”—Numbers 10:10 (emphasis added)
- “When I remember these things, I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go with the multitude; I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast.”—Psalm 42:4 (emphasis added)
Purpose 5. To Point to Yeshua
The Feasts of the Lord, God’s appointed times, are prophetic. When established, they applied to the nation of Israel. However, they also pointed to a future day when their Messiah would come into the world and fulfill (not nullify) the law and commandments. Israel looked forward with faith and hope.
Today, we look back and see how they pointed to Jesus. We also have faith and hope of His covenant fulfillment. And again, we have a choice as to how we respond to the Spirit’s direction that equips us to walk in covenant revelation continually.
Because of His sovereignty and all-powerful creating character, God’s appointed times are not something of the past, but, as His Word says, His is alive and active, constantly at work, and never changing.
Takeaway
The God of the Old Testament is no different than the God of the New Testament. He remains the same yesterday, today, and forever!
And doesn’t this give us hope?
Now we can truly start to believe and live out the covenant we are in, knowing that even when our feelings, emotions, circumstances, finances, and so on change, He does not.
And YOU are in a covenant relationship with someone who CANNOT break His covenant promises. Rest in this today and praise God!
God’s Appointed Times in Summary
The Hebrew calendar that God established through the nation of Israel gives us a prophetic pattern to follow. The calendar is a rhythm of repentance and renewal built into our days, weeks, months, and years.
The patterns of God reveal His unchanging and sovereign character and His desire to always draw us back to Him (His call for us to repent) when we have gone astray. This is part of His covenant promise to us. It is our choice how we respond to the Covenant-Keeping God.
Will we choose to worship Him according to His timeline and ways? When we step out in faith as we worship in this way, blessings are sure to follow…