Slices
Prepare
How do you celebrate special occasions in your family? With a party? With food? What about at church – with a bring and share? Any other more unusual ways?
Bible passage
The Festival of Trumpets
23 The Lord said to Moses, 24 ‘Say to the Israelites: “On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of sabbath rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts. 25 Do not do any of your ordinary work, but present a food offering to the Lord.”’
The Day of Atonement
26 The Lord said to Moses, 27 ‘The tenth day of this seventh month is the Day of Atonement. Hold a sacred assembly and deny yourselves, and present a food offering to the Lord. 28 Do not do any work on that day, because it is the Day of Atonement, when atonement is made for you before the Lord your God. 29 Those who do not deny themselves on that day must be cut off from their people. 30 I will destroy from among their people anyone who does any work on that day. 31 You shall do no work at all. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come, wherever you live. 32 It is a day of sabbath rest for you, and you must deny yourselves. From the evening of the ninth day of the month until the following evening you are to observe your sabbath.’
The Festival of Tabernacles
33 The Lord said to Moses, 34 ‘Say to the Israelites: “On the fifteenth day of the seventh month the Lord’s Festival of Tabernacles begins, and it lasts for seven days. 35 The first day is a sacred assembly; do not do any of your ordinary work. 36 For seven days present food offerings to the Lord, and on the eighth day hold a sacred assembly and present a food offering to the Lord. It is the closing special assembly; do not do any of your ordinary work.
37 (‘“These are the Lord’s appointed festivals, which you are to proclaim as sacred assemblies for bringing food offerings to the Lord – the burnt offerings and grain offerings, sacrifices and drink offerings required for each day. 38 These offerings are in addition to those for the Lord’s Sabbaths and in addition to your gifts and whatever you have vowed and all the freewill offerings you give to the Lord.)
39 ‘“So beginning with the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the crops of the land, celebrate the festival to the Lord for seven days; the first day is a day of sabbath rest, and the eighth day also is a day of sabbath rest. 40 On the first day you are to take branches from luxuriant trees – from palms, willows and other leafy trees – and rejoice before the Lord your God for seven days. 41 Celebrate this as a festival to the Lord for seven days each year. This is to be a lasting ordinance for the generations to come; celebrate it in the seventh month. 42 Live in temporary shelters for seven days: all native-born Israelites are to live in such shelters 43 so that your descendants will know that I made the Israelites live in temporary shelters when I brought them out of Egypt. I am the Lord your God.”’
44 So Moses announced to the Israelites the appointed festivals of the Lord.
Explore
If you wanted to announce something important, nowadays you’d probably put it on social media. At the time we’re reading about, trumpets were blown to signify that something was beginning, or to call people together, or to make your presence known. (Look at Numbers 10:1– 10 for a description of this.) The Festival of Trumpets announces the beginning of a ten-day period before the Day of Atonement, when God dealt with the sin and rebellion of his people.
The week-long Festival of Tabernacles commemorated the time spent wandering in the wilderness (v 43), when – to put it in modern terms – they were camping out! It was a celebratory time, and is described in Nehemiah 8, after the people have rebuilt the walls of Jerusalem. It was celebrated with great joy after hearing God’s Word and reading the command to do so, after a long time of it being forgotten.
Goldingay compares the Jewish cycle of feasts with our contemporary church one, and notes that ‘Both calendars make it possible to instill deep in people’s consciousness the fundamental elements of their faith’. Then and now, personally and collectively, remembering God’s action and intervention is a key part of our worship.
Respond
Sometimes, when our church celebrations are large and exuberant, connecting with them personally can get a bit lost. What could you do to make them more meaningful on a personal level, for yourself and/or for others?
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: Judges 13,14; Mark 4
Pray for Scripture Union
Please pray for the SU Mission Events Operations team as they seek to find ways to create new holidays to meet the needs of children and young people who might otherwise miss out on the opportunity to develop a deeper relationship with Jesus. (Today's prayer relate to this article.)
Equipping the church to reach the next generation
Across England and Wales, increasing numbers of children and young people are asking big questions about life, faith and meaning. Many are more open than we might assume – curious, thoughtful, and ready for conversations about Jesus, even when church isn’t part of their everyday world. For churches who have a heart for the next generation, this presents a real and hopeful opportunity.
Many leaders carry a deep desire to help the next generation encounter Jesus, but with full diaries and many responsibilities, knowing how to respond – or where to begin – can feel uncertain. That’s why we’ve created the It’s Time to Act guide.
It’s a simple, encouraging resource designed to help churches take thoughtful, realistic steps towards revealing Jesus to the next generation. Rather than offering big programmes or quick fixes, the guide focuses on what’s possible now – small, achievable actions that can grow over time. Inside, you’ll find practical ideas shaped by real church life that work alongside busy schedules and varied contexts. So, whether your church is just beginning to explore this opportunity, or already taking steps, the guide aims to meet you where you are and help you discern what comes next.
Our hope is that It’s Time to Act feels less like another initiative, and more like an invitation – to notice where God is already at work, and to take a next step, one step at a time.
If you’d like to explore the guide and see whether it could support your church, you can order a copy here.
