The church calendar of events
Zechariah 7: You’re interested in religion, I’m interested in you.
For seventy years the people of Israel have observed an annual day of mourning in remembrance of the fall of Jerusalem. Now, God’s promise of restoration has been fulfilled and many have returned to their homeland. A delegation of Jews arrives to ask whether or not that day of mourning should be continued. A committee is formed to make a decision and Zechariah has a word from the Lord for them. The Almighty says that the annual observance wasn’t for his sake but for theirs. If they want to look to the past, they need to look to the unchanging message of God’s messengers through the years. When all’s said and done, the Lord tells them, its people and not God who get all worked up over religious traditions. His concern is for people and not about annual fasts and feasts. That, my friends, is a terrific reminder for church folks. Having annual events isn’t a bad thing but it’s not the main thing. God cares about people. The Lord’s all for it if a yearly homecoming celebration helps us minister to people. If it’s an inward-focused, remembering-the-good-old-days event, well, the Lord sees it as a waste of time. How we go about doing church matters to God, but his concerns are often considerably different than are ours.
Take Away: The Lord cares about people a lot more than he cares about our church calendars.