holidays of god in the spring feasts

8/13/2019 Holidays of God in the Spring Feasts

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THE HOLIDAYSOF GOD

The Spring Feasts

IIf observant Jewish peopleare right, the ancient festivalcycle of Israel is of timeless

importance in remembering Godsprovisions for the past, present,and future of His people.

If those who believe in Jesusare right, this same festival cycleis more than a timeless treasureof Israel. The biblical holidaysof God are also a pattern ofshadows fulfilled in a Messiah

who has already come in the firstphase of a two-part plan to saveHis people and rule the world.

In the following pages, RBCstaff writer Kevin Williams givesus the first of a two-part studyon the Holidays Of God. With

years of experience in messianiccongregations, Kevin showsus the profound relationshipbetween the annual cycle ofJewish holidays, and theiramazing prophetic significance

for people of all nations.Martin R. De Haan IIManaging Editor: David Sper Cover Design:Terry BidgoodScripture quotations are from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by ThomasNelson, Inc. Used by permission.All rights reserved. 2000, 2004 RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, Michigan Printed in USA

CONTENTS

The Holidays Of GodChart. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Gods Spring Feasts. . . . . 3

Passover (Pesach) . . . . . 5

Unleavened Bread(Chag HaMatzot). . . . . 15

Firstfruits(HaBikkurim) . . . . . . . . 20

Pentecost(Shavout) . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Just A Coincidence? . . . 31

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GODS SPRINGFEASTS

The Lord spoke to Moses,saying, Speak to thechildren of Israel, and say tothem: The feasts of the Lord,which you shall proclaim tobe holy convocations, theseare My feasts (Lev. 23:1-2).

WWith these words,the Lord of Israelestablished an

annual cycle of holidaysstill honored in Jewish

communities all over theworld. Whether thesecommunities are Orthodox,Conservative, or Reform;

whether they are Russian,Yemenite, or American,

these feasts form a commonthread in global Jewishculture.

In the Hebrew language,the word for My feastscan be phonetically spelled

mo-a-deem. It is a word thatis best translated in Englishas appointed times or

appointed feasts. Thisadditional emphasis reflectsthe importance the God ofthe Bible attached to thesedays.

These appointed timesof the Lord are importantfor many reasons. To begin

with, they are part of anational system of time-

outs. Together, they provideweekly, monthly, and yearlyoccasions to rest from theroutines and common workof daily life. The Provider ofIsrael designed these time-

outs and appointed timesfor rest, reflection, and

worship. They are sacred

3

This series ofholidays has

significancereaching farbeyond thenation and

culture of Israel.

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convocations that call thepeople of God together notonly in the grandeur andmajesty of the temple, butalso in the quiet shelterand simplicity ofevery home of theland. Together,these appointedtimesform a system ofremembrance. Theappointed times ofthe Lord giveeveryhousehold,

whether richor poor, anoccasion torecount theawesomepower and

love of theGod of Abraham,Isaac, and Jacob.

Its important for us tounderstand, however, thatthis cycle of holidays is not

just about Jewish culture.Even though they are linkedto the agricultural cycle of

occasions are used to retellstories of Jewish life andorigins, these holidaysprovide a panorama ofhistory that has strong

implications forall the familiesof the earth. Seenindividually andtogether, these feastspaint a compellingpicture of the past,

present, andfuture work of

a Messiahwho is the

source oflife andhope andpeace forall the

nations of the

world.



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PASSOVER(PESACH)

On the fourteenth dayof the first month at twilightis the Lords Passover. Andon the fifteenth day of the

same month is the Feast

of Unleavened Bread tothe Lord; seven days youmust eat unleavenedbread (Lev. 23:5-6).

TThe holiday of Passover

is celebrated on the14th of the Jewish

month of Nisan. Ever sinceits beginning, Passover, orPesach as it is called inHebrew, has been celebrated

on the full moon of a monththat literally means theirflight. Even though Nisan

usually corresponds withMarch/April on the Romancalendar, and even thoughmodern Jewish communitiescelebrate their New Year onthe first day of the seventhmonth (Oct.-Nov.), Nisanis the first month of theappointed feasts of theLord.

The 14th of the monthof their flight looks backto the origin of the firstPassover and to the birthof the nation of Israel. Eversince Israels exodus from

Egypt in about 1450 BC,the God of the Bible hasasked His people to use thisday to remember how Hedelivered their ancestorsfrom the idols and slave-

yards of Egypt.Passovers intent has

been honored. On the 14thof Nisan, observant Jewishfathers tell their childrenhow the God of their fathers

delivered their ancestorsfrom economic bondageand spiritual darkness. It is

5

Passover

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at the feast of Passover thatJewish parents still describehow God used 10 plaguesto break the stubborn gripof the Pharaoh. The plaguesbegan with the killing ofthe Nile River, which was

worshiped by the Egyptiansas a source of life. Theplagues ended only afterGod took the life of everyfirstborn son of Egypt.1

That final decisiveplague came during thefull moon of Nisan 14.Moses, the leader of the

Jewish people, hadinstructed every Israelitehome to sacrifice a lamb,

collect its bloodthebiblical sign of lifeand

with a hyssop brush paintthe lambs blood on thelintel and door posts oftheir houses.2

On the evening of thatfirst Passover, the Lord

visited Egypt as an angelof death. According to theScriptures, the Lord tookthe life of every firstbornpeople and livestockincludedexcept whereHe found blood on thedoorway. Only where there

was blood on the doorwaydid He pass over andspare the life of thefirstborn in that home.3

To understand the killingof the paschal (Passover)

lamb, its important to knowthat in Egyptian societythe lamb, or ram (a malesheep), represented apagan god of the Egyptiansnamed Amon (also spelled

Amun, Amen, or Ammon).Amon, whose namemeans hidden one,

6

The story of

Israels rescue fromEgypt is a picturenot only of the past

but of a futurerescue as well.

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was considered the king ofthe gods and the sourceof all life on heaven andearth.4According to theEgyptian zodiac, Nisan

was the chief monthof this god, andthe 15th of thatmonth during thefull moon wasbelieved to be the apexof Amons powers.

The lamb was so sacredin Egyptian cult practicethat the people of the land

were forbidden to eventouch a ram, let alone bringit into their home, slaughter

it,5 roast, andthen eat it6 as

God commandedthe Israelites

to do. To theEgyptians the

killing of a lambwas a desecrationof their religion! ThePassover sacrifice was adirect challenge to their

gods. To the Jewish people,the same sacrifice fulfilled

a promise of the Almighty:Against all the godsof Egypt I will execute

judgment: I am the Lord.7

On the celebrated dayof Amon, and at the alleged

peak of his powers, the Godof Abraham, Isaac, andJacob not only overcamePharaoh, but desecrated the

worship of Amon and gavethe Egyptian people reason

to believe in the God ofIsrael.

After 40 years, the

7

To the Egyptians,

the killing ofa lamb wasa desecration

of their religion!The Passover

sacrifice wasa direct challenge

to their gods.

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Jewish people carried thesememories into a homelandthat came to be known asthe nation of Israel. Herethe children of the Exodusbegan to celebrate theannual feast of Passoverin remembrance of whatGod had done for them inEgypt. Centuries later, whenIsraels King Solomon builta temple in Jerusalem, theytraveled great distancesto observe their Pesachtogether in Jerusalem. This

was the practice of Jewish

people until the Romandestruction of the templecomplex in AD 70.

After the destruction ofthe temple, Jewish peoplehad to remember Passover

in a different way. Withoutthe temple, there could beno lamb sacrifice. The Lawsaid the sacrifice could bemade only by qualifiedpriests serving at the

altar and place of Godschoosing. As a result, fornearly 2,000 years lamb

has not been served inJewish homes during thePassover meal. Instead, therabbis8 and sages declaredthat unleavened bread,matzah bread, would bethe appropriate substitute.Eating the matzah would beequal to eating the lamb.

The destruction ofthe temple altered the

way all the holidays were

celebrated. Without atemple, and without anauthorized priesthood,

8

People whobelieve that Jesusis the promised

Messiah haveembraced

the spiritualsignificance of theholidays of God.

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many of the activitiescentral to holidayobservance could notbe practiced.

At this point we cansee why people who believethat Jesus is the promisedMessiah of Israel haveembraced the spiritualsignificance of the holidaysof God. About 40 yearsbefore the destruction ofthe temple, Jesus not onlyclaimed to be the Messiah(Jn. 4:25-26) but also thatHe had come to fulfill the

meaning of the Passoversacrifice. At a PassoverSeder,9which later becameknown by His followers asthe table of Communion,Jesus held up the elements

of wine and matzah andapplied them to Himself.During the meal He brokeunleavened bread with Hisdisciples, and then heldthat broken matzah in His

hands, saying, This is Mybody which is given for you;do this in remembrance of

Me (Lk. 22:19). Thenafter the meal He held upa cup of wine and with thesame force of personalapplication to Himself,said, This cup is the newcovenant in My blood,

which is shed for you(v.20). They were claimsthat were outrageous andblasphemous if they werenot true. But they were true,and they help to explain

why the feast of Passoverwould go through such aprofound transition in the

years ahead.For those who find

compelling reasons toaccept Jesus claims, theCommunion elements aretreasured reminders of His

broken body and shedblood. Fulfilled in Jesus, thePassover celebration thendid more than remember

just the birth of a nation.This annual feast also

anticipated Messiahsultimate deliverance ofan international body of



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people who are willing totrust in His sacrificial deathfor their spiritual protection.

For those Jewish peoplewho have not yet believed inJesus, the broken matzah, orunleavened bread, continuesto be a part of the Passovermeal; yet it is shrouded inmystery. This mystery, apuzzle on which theJewish sages cannot reachconsensus, need not be amystery to those who believein Jesus as the Messiah.

One element of mysteryis found in a Passovertradition involving the

afikomen. On everyPassover table there is acloth bag called a matzah

tosh. The bag is eithersquare or round and liesflat on the table. Within thematzah tosh are three piecesof matzah bread, eachseparated in its own pocket.In this way they are hiddenfrom view, but the celebrantsknow they are there. Duringthe Seder, the middlematzah is removed from itsplace, broken in half, andone portion is wrapped in alinen cloth. This wrappedpiece of matzah is called theafikomen.Afikomen is not

a Hebrew word, but a Greekword that means thecoming one. The afikomenis removed from the tableand hidden. Later in themeal, it becomes a childrens

game to search for thehidden afikomen. The child

who finds it brings it back tothe table where Papa mustransom it back. Once it ispaid for, the afikomen is

unwrapped and shared byall as the last food eatenso its flavor will stay on the

10

Jesus claimed thatHe had come tofulfill the meaningof the Passover

sacrifice.

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tongue and its memory stayin the mind the rest of theevening.

The rabbis cannotagree on the significanceof this unusual observance,or its origins. Some believethe three piecesof matzah inthe matzah toshrepresent threecrowns oflearning.Others believeit represents thethree patriarchs:

Abraham, Isaac, andJacob. Still others believe itsymbolizes the three typesof people in Israel: thepriests, the Levites, and thecommoners. Yet through the

eyes of the Gospels we seeanother explanation. Jewishand Gentile people whobelieve in Jesus have oftenseen in the afikomen astriking picture of the tri-

unity of Deity. In the threefolds of the matzah toshthere is a picture of the

Father, Son, and HolySpirit. That the middlematzahrepresented bythe Son, our Messiahisbroken, wrapped in linen,hidden, and ransomed (the

price paid), andthen broughtback for thefamily to acceptand enjoy seemstoo deliberateto easily dismiss.While thesymbolism

of this ritual remains a

mystery to those who havenot accepted Jesus, throughmessianic eyes the meaningseems clear and powerful.

When Jesus said ofthe unleavened bread,

Take, eat; this is My body,He was not instituting anempty ritual. He wasidentifying Himselfpersonally with both thematzah and the Passover

lamb, bringing to mind thewords of the prophet Isaiah:

Surely He has borne our



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griefs and carried oursorrows; yet we esteemedHim stricken, smitten byGod, and afflicted. ButHe was wounded for ourtransgressions, He wasbruised for our iniquities;the chastisement for our

peace was upon Him,and by His stripes we arehealed. All we like sheephave gone astray; wehave turned, every one,to his own way; and theLord has laid on Him theiniquity of us all. He was

oppressed and He wasafflicted, yet He openednot His mouth; He wasled as a lamb to the

slaughter, and as a sheepbefore its shearers is

silent, so He opened notHis mouth (53:4-7).In fulfillment of this

anticipation of a prophetin Israel, those who believein Jesus believe that when

we share in the bread ofCommunion and Passover,

we share in Christ, who

became our matzah. Hewas broken on our behalfto become our bread. InMideastern culture, breadis the staff of life, a symbolof all the provisions weneed to live.

There are other elementsin the Passover meal thatalso draw our attention tothe first redemption out of

Egypt, and the secondredemption through theMessiah, but we cannotexamine them all in onebooklet. Wed be leavingout a critical element,

however, if we did nottake time to examine theKiddush cup.

12

Each time we

share in the cupof Communion,we share in the

Passover cup of the

New Covenant.

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Another importantelement in a traditionalJewish Passover observanceis wine. During atypical PassoverSeder, four cups areshared, each with itsown significant picturein the ritual. The firstcup is called the cup ofsanctification, which setsthe feast apart from anycommonplace meal.The second cup is thecup of plagues,remembering the calamities

visited upon the Egyptians.The third cup is calledthe cup of redemption,recognizing andmemorializing the Hebrewsrelease from captivity. The

fourth cup is called the cupof praise, during which thefamily recites Psalms113118, traditionallyconsidered the praisePsalms.10

Our attention here is onthe third cup, the cup ofredemption, the Kiddush

cup, which in the modernSeder comes after the eatingof the afikomen. Because of

the ritualistic order ofthe meal and the richsignificance of thisobservance, some

Christian theologiansbelieve that this is the

cup Jesus lifted, blessed,and declared, Drink fromit, all of you. For this is

My blood of the newcovenant, which isshed for many for

the remission of sins.11

A cup of red wineis symbolic of blood inJewish tradition, which issignificant in our story. Inthe Pentateuch (first fivebooks of the Bible) and

throughout the ancientworld, covenants weresealed and confirmed withblood. This is no less truein the Gospels. Symbolically

with the cup and literally

through His blood shed atthe crucifixion, the Messiahproclaimed the beginnings of



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a new covenant predicted bythe Jewish prophet Jeremiah:

Behold, the days arecoming, says the Lord,when I will make a newcovenant with the house ofIsrael and with the houseof Judahnot accordingto the covenant that Imade with their fathers inthe day that I took themby the hand to lead themout of the land of Egypt,

My covenant which theybroke, though I was ahusband to them, says

the Lord. But this is thecovenant that I will makewith the house of Israelafter those days, says theLord: I will put My law intheir minds, and write it

on their hearts; and I willbe their God, and they

shall be My people. Nomore shall every manteach his neighbor, andevery man his brother,

saying, Know the Lord,for they all shall know Me,from the least of them to

the greatest of them, saysthe Lord. For I will forgivetheir iniquity, and their sinI will remember no more(Jer. 31:31-34).Obviously, this New

Covenant has not yetreached its completefulfillment. Many thousandsof Jews and millions ofGentiles have come to faithin Jesus, and God rememberstheir sins no more. Yet not allof the house of Israel or thehouse of Judah have takenthis step of faith.

Those who believe inJesus as Messiah believethat each time we share inthe cup of Communion, weshare in the Passover cup ofthe New Covenant. With this

symbol of our redemption,we remember not only thedeath of Christ but also theblood that has sealed theNew Covenant, for in Him

we have redemption through

His blood, the forgiveness ofsins, according to the richesof His grace.12



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UNLEAVENEDBREAD(CHAG

HAMATZOT)

On the fifteenth day of thesame month is the Feast of

Unleavened Bread to theLord; seven days you musteat unleavened bread(Lev. 23:6).

IIn a general sense,

the holiday ofPassover is used

interchangeably with theFeast of Unleavened Bread.Technically, however, theLords Feast of Unleavened

Bread begins on Nisan15, the day after thePassover sacrifice.

Known in synagoguesas Chag HaMatzot, thisholiday lasts for a week. For7 days the people of Israelare to eat only unleavenedbread in remembrance ofthe day God delivered Hispeople from Egypt.

That historic daydeserves to be remembered:In droves, a multitudeestimated at 3 millionmen, women, andchildrenalong withthe herds and wealth ofEgyptbegan their exodus.

In the span of a heartbeat,the children of Israel wereliterally transferred out ofthe kingdom of slavery andinto the kingdom of liberty,a community redeemed.

They departed fromRameses in the first month,on the fifteenth day of thefirst month; on the day afterthe Passover the childrenof Israel went out with

boldness in the sight of allthe Egyptians.13 They tooktheir bread in its mixing

15

UnleavenedBread

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bowls, without time for theleaven (yeast) to form or forthe bread to rise. When theorder came to leave, theyleftflat bread and all!

This act of leavingEgypt with unleavenedbread has led to one of themost colorfultraditions ofthe Passoverseason. Inanticipationof the days of unleavenedbread, Jewish mothers dotheir spring cleaning.

With great care they sweepand search and scrub theirhomes to remove every bitof leaven. Floors are swept,pots are boiled, cupboardsare emptiedall in an effort

to remove any trace ofleaven. Then just beforePassover, bonfires are lit inempty lots and fields allover Israel to destroy any ofthe bread and crumbs that

have been found.Rabbis point out that

leaven puffs up bread the

way pride does. Flat breadspeaks of humility andobedience. Unleavenedbread speaks of ourreadiness to put away fromus the evil inclination thatlives within all of us. Itreminds us that freedom is

not enough.God did notdeliver Hispeople fromEgypt just

for them to be free, butthat theyd be free fromthe bondage of sin. He

delivered His people toenjoy the liberty that isfound by all who learn tolive in humble dependenceon the one true God.

The apostle Paul,

a Jewish scholar inhis own right, may havebeen alluding to this in1 Corinthians 5:7-8:

Purge out the old leaven,that you may be a new

lump, since you truly areunleavened. For indeedChrist, our Passover, was



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sacrificed for us. Thereforelet us keep the feast, notwith old leaven, nor withthe leaven of malice andwickedness, but with theunleavened bread of

sincerity and truth.In Pauls eyes, and

in the understanding ofother rabbis, leaven is anillustration of sin. TheFeast of Unleavened Breadtherefore speaks of the needfor Gods people to livenew lives marked by abreak from the bondage

experienced in the kingdomof sin and darkness.

What we must also keepin mind, however, is themessianic significance Jesusclaimed for the matzah of

Passover. When He brokethe unleavened bread of theSeder and said, This is Mybody which is given for you.This do in remembrance ofMe, He was saying that

the matzah of the Passoverhad a meaning that isrealized fully in Him.

Some who believe inJesus see a mysterious andironic picture of Him thathas unintentionally shownup in the way unleavenedbread is made. By rabbinicdecree, matzah must bestriped, pierced, and burnedin such a way as to appearbruised. Is the likenesscoincidental? Or has the

God of Israel woven Hisstory into the traditionsof people who do not yetbelieve? The Jewish prophetIsaiah, speaking of Godssuffering Servant, told us

that it is by His stripeswe are healed, thatHe was pierced for our

17

The Feast ofUnleavened Bread

speaks of our needfor a break fromthe bondage of our

old way of life.

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transgressions, was bruisedfor our iniquities,14 and ofcourse was without sin.

There are indicationsthat the God of the Bible

wants us to see Jesus as oursource of sinless bread.Bethlehem, the place ofJesus birth, is rendered inHebrew as Beit-lechem,meaning the house of

bread.Keeping in mind this

picture of Messiah as our

matzah, listen to what Jesussaid in the Gospel of John:

Most assuredly, I say toyou, unless you eat theflesh of the Son of Manand drink His blood, youhave no life in you.Whoever eats My fleshand drinks My blood haseternal life, and I willraise him up at the lastday. For My flesh is foodindeed, and My blood isdrink indeed. He whoeats My flesh and drinks

My blood abides in Me,

and I in him. As theliving Father sent Me,and I live because of theFather, so he who feedson Me will live becauseof Me (6:53-57).

John went on to saythat this teaching was sodifficult that, upon hearingit, many of Jesus disciplesturned away from Him(vv.60-66). We can see

why. If taken literally,Jesus comments abouteating His flesh and

18

We haveleft our own

Egypt, carrying

our Bread withusand notmerely withus, but in us,

the veryBread of Life.

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drinking His blood seemcannibalistic. Yet if Jesus

was speaking figurativelyof spiritual truths (v.63),and if He is the Messiah-bread of Israel, Hismessage is profound.Jesus who became ourunleavened bread has

invited us to share inHim. He invites us to give

ourselves to Him and adoptHis own character, purgingthe leaven of our old ways.

Many who believe in Jesushave found this picturecompelling. We have leftour own Egypt, carryingour Bread with usand notmerely with us but in usthe very Bread of Life.

Like Lot fleeing Sodom,the Israelites were not tolook back on their formerlife but were to take the flatbread with them, not even

giving it time to rise. Wetoo, once we come intoa saving knowledge ofMessiah, must turn from

the former things and walkin faith into spiritualmaturity and faithfulness,putting away the childishand sinful things, andtrusting God for all that

lies ahead.

19

If the unleavenedbread of thePassover is

fulfilled by GodsMessiah, it means

that we are notleft to live a

sinless life in ourown strength.

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FIRSTFRUITS(HABIKKURIM)

The Lord spoke to Moses,saying, Speak to thechildren of Israel, and sayto them: When you comeinto the land which I give

to you, and reap its harvest,then you shall bring a sheafof the firstfruits of yourharvest to the priest. He

shall wave the sheaf beforethe Lord, to be accepted on

your behalf; on the day afterthe Sabbath the priest shallwave it (Lev. 23:9-11).

TThe third appointed

feast was delayed

until the people ofIsrael took possession oftheir Promised Land. Once

they began taking itsharvest, they were tobegin observing a feastof firstfruits on the dayafter the Sabbath. SincePassover was a day on

which no common workwas to be done, itappears that the Feastof Firstfruits was to beobserved on Nisan 15.

For as long as the Jewishpeople had a tabernacle ortemple, they were to give tothe temple priests a portionof all their increase and

harvest. This shall be thepriests due from the people,from those who offer asacrifice, whether it is bullor sheep: they shall give tothe priest the shoulder, the

cheeks, and the stomach.The firstfruits of your grainand your new wine and

your oil, and the first of thefleece of your sheep, youshall give him.15

When this sacrificewas given to the priests,the offerer made a

20

Firstfruits

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proclamation: I declaretoday to the Lord your Godthat I have come to thecountry which the Lordswore to our fathers to giveus.16 The priest would thentake the basket, or baskets,and place them beforethe altar. Following thecommandment of God, theman would then recite, inthe presence of a priest, thefollowing Scripture:

You shall answer and saybefore the Lord your God:My father was a Syrian,

about to perish, and hewent down to Egypt anddwelt there, few innumber; and there hebecame a nation, great,mighty, and populous.

But the Egyptiansmistreated us, afflicted us,and laid hard bondage onus. Then we cried out tothe Lord God of ourfathers, and the Lord

heard our voice andlooked on our afflictionand our labor and our

oppression. So the Lordbrought us out of Egyptwith a mighty hand andwith an outstretched arm,with great terror and with

signs and wonders. Hehas brought us to this

place and has given usthis land, a land flowingwith milk and honey;and now, behold, I havebrought the firstfruits ofthe land which You,O Lord, have givenme. Then you shall

set it before the Lord

your God, and worshipbefore the Lord your God(Dt. 26:5-10).

Again, theintent behindthe ritual was

not meretithes andofferings, orsuperficial

observances,but remembrance in ones

heart that God hadredeemed them out ofslavery into a new kingdom.



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At this appointed timethey were to acknowledgein their hearts and confessbefore witnesses that thefruits of their labor were a

grace-gift from the Almighty,who is the source of allmaterial and spiritual

wealth, and that they nolonger lived as slaves inbondage but as freecitizens in Gods kingdom.

Once again, however,there is reason to see amessianic significance tothe third appointed feast.

The New Testament refersto the resurrected Jesus asthe firstfruits of those who

will be resurrected (1 Cor.15:20,23). In this light it isimportant to see how the

resurrection of Jesus linksHim to the historic Feastof Firstfruits.

The Gospels tell us thatAfter the Sabbath, as thefirst day of the week began

to dawn, Mary Magdaleneand the other Mary came tosee the tomb (Mt. 28:1).

Keep in mind thataccording to Leviticus23:11, the Feast ofFirstfruits was to beobserved on the firstday after the Sabbathof Passover.17

Firsthand reports aboutthe resurrection tell us thatJesus rose from the grave onSunday, the first day of the

week after the seventh-daySabbath. Jesus rose fromthe dead not on just anyday. The reality as it playedout was not coincidentally

on the first day of the week;rather the Messiah roseaccording to Godsintentional design in orderto fulfill the holy Torah. Herose on HaBikkurimthe

Feast of Firstfruits. Hisresurrection was a promiseof the life and everlastingfreedom that would come toall who believed in Him.

Of the Feast of Firstfruits

Alfred Edersheim says,Each family, and everyindividual separately



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acknowledged, by theyearly presentation ofthe firstfruits, a livingrelationship between themand God, in virtue of whichthey gratefully received atHis hands all they had or

enjoyed, and solemnlydedicated both it andthemselves to the Lord.18

How much more, then,is this true for those whoconfess Jesus as Messiah!Those who believe in Jesuscan gratefully see Him asthe resurrected firstfruit of

the eternal harvest that Godhas promised to those whotrust Him.

Like Passover andthe Feast of UnleavenedBread, the Feast ofFirstfruits is ripe withmessianic overtones.Each is also rich withinsights and principles forour faith. Each feast has aconnection to the othersand to the events of Israelspast. Each feast also has aprophetic and messianicconnection to Israelsfuture.

What is also clear isthat these feasts can no

longer be kept as theywere observed in ancientIsrael. Ever since thedestruction of the templein AD 70, there has beenno temple in which to

offer sacrifice or to bringfirstfruits. As a result,synagogues remember theFeast of Firstfruits withprayers.

23

The NewTestament clearlystates that Jesus

became ourFirstfruits, the

first resurrection.

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INTERMEDIATEOBSERVANCE:Counting The Sheaves(Sfirat HaOmer)

You shall count foryourselves from theday after the Sabbath,from the day that youbrought the sheaf ofthe wave offering:

seven Sabbaths shall becompleted (Lev. 23:15).This commandment

is not a holiday as such,but it represents a processstill observed among

Orthodox, Conservative,and Messianic Jewishsynagogues. Togetherthese groups obey thecommandment to count thepassage of time, day by day,

from the Feast of Firstfruitsto the next major biblicalfeast: Shavuot. Shavuot,

which will be discussed ingreater detail in the nextsection, is also known as

Pentecost, and it fallsexactly 50 days afterthe Feast of Firstfruits.

In synagogues and inJewish homes the observantHebrew greets each evening(the beginning of the Jewishday) with special prayersto mark off the days untilShavuot. This observanceis not a countdown, but ananticipation of the comingappointed time of God.During this time Psalm 119is read in the synagoguesas observant Jewish peoplemeditate on its words ofencouragement.

An attitude of

anticipation can also beseen in a prayer recitedevery evening during theCounting of the Sheaves:May it be Your will, Lordour God, and the God of

our forefathers, that in themerit of the omer count thatI have counted today, maythere be corrected whateverblemish I have caused . . .and may I be cleansed and

sanctified with the holinessof Above.19

The observant Jewish



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man or woman looks tothese days as a time ofintrospection, with thenightly prayers helping toexamine his or her life, inanticipation of the great

work he expects the Creatorto do on the 50th day, theDay of Pentecost.

Leviticus 23:15 instructsthe celebrants to be mindfulof the passage of time fromPassover to Pentecost, the49 intermediary days. Somerabbis teach that this timeis like waiting for a friend

who is coming from afar fora special visit, bearing withhim great news. Certainly inthe biblical history of theapostles, the 49 daysbetween Pesach and

Shavuotwere spent infellowship with and beingtaught by the resurrectedMessiah. But He leftthem with the promisethat a unique Counselor

would come. And a veryintimate friend did visit onShavuotthe Holy Spirit.

In the church today,Pentecost is calculated inthe same way: 49 daysafter the resurrection.20

Few Christians, however,pay attention to theperiod between Easterand Pentecost. If believersfollowed this exampleof Israel, they mightexperience unexpectedblessing. The days thatmark the period from thecross to the dramaticbeginning of the church(from the resurrection to

the coming of the HolySpirit) could become atime of quiet soul-searchingand renewal. It could givethe church an annualopportunity to contemplate

the return of the Messiah inpower to the earth!



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PENTECOST(SHAVUOT)Feast Of Weeks

Count fifty days to the dayafter the seventh Sabbath;then you shall offer a new

grain offering to the Lord.You shall bring from yourdwellings two wave loavesof two-tenths of an ephah.They shall be of fine flour;they shall be baked with

leaven. They are thefirstfruits to the Lord.

And you shall offer with thebread seven lambs of the first

year, without blemish, oneyoung bull, and two rams.

They shall be as a burntoffering to the Lord, withtheir grain offering and their

drink offerings, an offeringmade by fire for a sweetaroma to the Lord. Then you

shall sacrifice one kid of thegoats as a sin offering, andtwo male lambs of the first

year as a sacrifice of a peaceoffering. The priest shallwave them with the breadof the firstfruits as a waveoffering before the Lord,with the two lambs. They

shall be holy to the Lord forthe priest. And you shall

proclaim on the same daythat it is a holy convocation

to you. You shall do nocustomary work on it. It

shall be a statute foreverin all your dwellingsthroughout your generations(Lev. 23:16-21).

EEarlier we spoke ofthe Jewish reading ofPsalm 119 during the

Counting of the Sheaves,of meditating on the

commandments of God,and of the importance ofself-examination for 50

26

Pentecost

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days after Passover. Thisemphasis on a thoughtfulrelationship to the Wordof God is importantbecause it is universallycommemorated in thesynagogues that onPentecost the Law (orteachings of God) was

given to Moses on MountSinai. Accompanied by fire,

the Almighty wrote theTen Commandments for thechildren of Israel. Fire is an

important element inPentecost.

In the second chapterof Acts, the disciples,along with the multitudeof witnesses from othernations, had just come fromthe Shavuot service in thetemple where every year theprophet Ezekiel was read:I looked, and behold, a

whirlwind was coming outof the north, a great cloud

with raging fire engulfingitself; and brightness wasall around it and radiating

out of its midst like thecolor of amber, out of themidst of the fire.21 In thepresence of this assemblythe sound of a mighty windand fire announcing the

presence of the Lord wasabout to replay the visionof Ezekiel!

When the Day ofPentecost had fully come,they were all with one

accord in one place. Andsuddenly there came asound from heaven, as of

27

On Pentecost allthe spring feasts

culminated inthe New Covenant

era, when theSpirit of Godwould begin

establishing anew kingdom

on earth.

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a rushing mighty wind,and it filled the wholehouse where they were

sitting. Then thereappeared to them dividedtongues, as of fire, andone sat upon each ofthem. And they were allfilled with the Holy Spiritand began to speak withother tongues, as theSpirit gave themutterance (Acts 2:1-4).Once again the fire of

God appeared, but thistime to His trusted friends.

Peter, the man who hadbackslidden and evendenied knowing theMessiah three times, nowrose with courage and gavehis first sermon. The marvel

of Messiahs Spirit, theRuach HaKodesh in theHebrew (Holy Breath)had fallen. The same breaththat gave life to Adam,transforming him from a

lump of clay into a livingman, now transformedlives by the thousands!

An important fact aboutShavuot is that it is one ofthree pilgrim feasts whenall Israelite men wererequired by law to come toJerusalem and bring theirofferings to the temple. Onthis day, as Acts tells us,there would have beenHebrews from all over theknown world gathered inthe upper rooms of thetemple. These were temple-observant men: Parthiansand Medes and Elamites,those dwelling in

Mesopotamia, Judeaand Cappadocia, Pontusand Asia, Phrygia andPamphylia, Egypt and theparts of Libya adjoiningCyrene, visitors from Rome,

both Jews and proselytes,Cretans and Arabs.22

Peter spoke to themultitude, reminding them,For the promise is to youand to your children, and

to all who are afar off.23Hence the key to Peterssermon, Whoever calls on



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the name of the Lord shallbe saved,24was proclaimedfor the Jew and the Gentile.

While incidental to themessage, note that Peterspoke of King David duringhis sermon (Acts 2:25-36).Jewish tradition teachesthat David died on Shavuot,and this too, like thereading from Ezekielmentioned earlier, wouldhave been in the forefrontof the minds of the Hebrewmen surrounding Peter.

All of these events and

memorials came togetherto touch the hearts ofunbelieving Jews, movingthem to ask, Men andbrethren, what shall wedo?25

Peters answer then is asvalid today: Repent, andlet every one of you bebaptized in the name ofJesus Christ for theremission of sins; and you

shall receive the gift of theHoly Spirit.26

Because Pentecost, or

the Feast of Weeks, isassociated with the givingof the Law and the comingof the Spirit, it is interestingto compare the outcome ofthose two events. We readin Exodus 32:28 that 3,000men died at Mount Sinai

because of the sin ofworshiping the golden

calf. Contrast that loss of3,000 lives with the NewTestament Shavuotwhen3,000 men came to new lifein Jesus 50 days after thecelebration of Passover.

The believers ofPentecost were worthy ofdeath.27 But because their

29

The firstfruit ofthe resurrectionwas followed atPentecost with

the firstfruit ofthe church.

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faith rested on the greatHigh Priest, Jesus, who hadmade atonement for theirsins, they were now aliveeternallypart of thefirstfruit harvest, the firsttithe, and the promise ofJeremiah 31:31. On thisPentecost all the springfeasts culminated in theNew Covenant era, whenthe Spirit of God wouldbegin establishing a newkingdom on earthnot byoverthrowing governmentsor armies, but through the

humble submission ofindividual hearts, one at atime, over hundreds of

years. Not by might norby power, but by My Spirit,says the Lord of hosts.28

Shavuot is also calledAtzeret shel Pesach, thecompletion of Passover. Itties together the first nightof Passover to the finalobservance of

Shavuot, continuallyreminding the faithful thatGod is the Redeemer and

Rock of our salvation, theonly One who can rescueus from bondage. Severaltimes in the Gospel of Johnour Messiah said that if weabide in Him, He will abidein us:

I am the vine, you arethe branches. He whoabides in Me, and I inhim, bears much fruit; forwithout Me you can donothing (Jn. 15:5).This was not merely

some utopian teaching anda thing to humanly strive

for, as if man could attainsuch merit on his ownpower. It was a promiseof the Most High. OnPentecost, at the close ofan era in human history

and at the dawn of a newseason of planting andbearing fruit, the Spiritcame to abide in everyman, woman, and child

who called out in faith

to Messiah.



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MERELY ACOINCIDENCE?

TThe stage had been

set by the Ancient ofDays, the pattern laid

out for all to see in the firstof the mo-a-deem, theseappointed spring-timefestivals. The Messiah ofIsrael put aside His gloryand joined the ranks ofmankind, becoming theincarnate One. Hetabernacled among us,as Johns gospel said, and

dwelt among His owncreation. Then came theclimax of His time onearththe crucifixion. Thebattle had been waged inthe events of the Passover

week as He became boththe bread and wine and thelamb of sacrifice that deathmight pass over both theJewish believers and allmankind who accept Him

by faith today. Three daysand nights passed until the

victory was declared. At

Firstfruits, Jesus, theslain lamb, became theSavior, the firstfruit of ourresurrection; glorified anddedicated, conquering thepower of sin and deathforevermore. With greatanticipation, we count thedays from Passover toPentecost and the birth ofthe church. The first harvestof humankind, 3,000strong, issued in the newera of messianic revelation,a perpetual spring seasonthat continues to permit

germination, blooming,and growth. Is it merelya coincidence that theseNew Testament eventscorrespond so perfectly tothe pictures and lessons

presented to us in the feastdays? And does God havepictures for us of the finalharvest represented in theFall Feasts: the Feast ofTrumpets, the Day of

Atonement, and the Feastof Tabernacles?

As one friend puts it so



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well, there are no suchthings as coincidences, onlyGod-incidences.

ENDNOTES:

1 Exodus 12:29-32. 2 Exodus12:22. 3 Exodus 12:23.4 http://www.memphis.edu/egypt/karnaktm.htm. 5 Exodus12:6. 6 Exodus 12:8. 7 Exodus12:12. 8 Some rabbis (Moshe

benNachman chief among them,11941270) are of the opinionthat the afikomen is eaten incommemoration of the Pesachoffering (PassoverItsObservance, Laws andSignificance, p.75, 1994,

Mesorah Publications, Ltd.,Brooklyn, NY). 9 Sederis theHebrew term for order; it is theorder of the liturgy for the mealcelebration. 10 Found in theOrder of Service for mostPassover celebrations.11 Matthew 26:27-28.12 Ephesians 1:7 (see alsoCol. 1:14). 13 Numbers 33:3.14 Isaiah 53:5; Zechariah 12:10.15 Deuteronomy 18:3-4.16 Deuteronomy 26:3.17 On this the Phariseesand Sadducees disagreed.The Sadducees believed thisSabbath to be the Saturday

that falls during the weekof Passover. The Pharisees,however, believed that Passoveris a Sabbath, and therefore, thesecond day of Passover (Feastof Unleavened Bread) was alsoFirstfruits. Regardless, thecalendar will frequently fall sothat the Feast of UnleavenedBread does fall on a Sunday,fulfilling both the Pharisee andSadducee interpretations.18 The Temple, AlfredEdersheim, p.380, reprinted1994, Eerdmans, Grand Rapids,MI. 19 ShavuotIts Observance,Laws and Significance, p.35,Mesorah Publications, Ltd.,

Brooklyn, NY, 1997.20

At theCouncil of Nicea (AD 325),Emperor Constantine forbadethe observance of any biblicalfeast because of their strongJewish overtones, and thecalculation of the resurrection

was no longer based on Passoverbut on the first Sunday after thespring equinox. Occasionally,however, the two seasons docoincide. 21 Ezekiel 1:4.22Acts 2:9-11. 23Acts 2:39.24Acts 2:21. 25Acts 2:37.26

Acts 2:38.27

Romans 3:23.28 Zechariah 4:6.



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