Pentecost means according to the dictionary “Fifty”. To understand the true meaning of Pentecost we have to go back to the Old Testament in the book of Leviticus. The children of Israel have escaped Egypt into the wilderness of Sinai. Fifty days later God calls Moses to come upon Mt. Sinai to receive the Law. This is found in Exodus Chapter 19.  During this time God gives Moses the ” Feast of the LORD” found in Leviticus chapter 23. These Feasts are The sabbath, Passover, Feast of Unleavened Bread, Feast of  First Fruits, The Feast of Weeks ( Pentecost), Feasts of Trumpets, The Day of Atonement, Feast of tabernacles.  God commanded the Children of Israel to keep these Feasts forever in your generations. (Leviticus 23:41).

 

      Contained in these Feasts are the prophecy of Jesus Christ and the future of the world. I will attempt to teach and explain this prophecy, how it relates and affects us today.  I have been a Christain for 20 years. I hate to admit I did not know what Passover was,  I thought I knew what Easter was, I did not have the foggiest idea what Feast of Unleavened Bread or Feast of Weeks was, I thought Pentecost was were they spoke in tongues! I guess I was pretty ignorant of the true meaning of the Scriptures. I ask many people who I felt where good bible students. I found out most did not know either. So I felt the need to learn and teach this, it is the very basics of our Christain belief. If you have not read the articles “What is Palm Sunday or Easter? Passover? What does it all mean?” Please stop and read. All the Feast are tied together, so understand one you need an understanding of all the others.

WHAT IS THE FEAST OF WEEKS?

 

As I said earlier Pentecost means Fifty. The Feast of Weeks is celebrated 50 days after the Feast of the First Fruits. Leviticus 23:15-16 says ” And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the Sabbath, from the day that you brought the sheaf of the wave offering: seven Sabbath shall be completed. Count fifty days to the day after the seventh Sabbath: then you shall offer a new grain offering to the LORD.” This is the time of the wheat harvest. The feast of the First Fruits was the barley harvest, this feast started the day after the sabbath marking the end of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Barley was the first grain to ripen for the harvest of the year. JESUS  fulfills the prophecy of the First Fruits, He was crucified, dead and buried, and arose on the third day, The very day of the feast of the firstfruits. This the same day we celebrate Easter, the day JESUS rose from conquering death, this why we don’t celebrate the sabbath but celebrate our risen LORD on Sunday the first day of the week. During the next forty days, JESUS  revealed HIMSELF to HIS disciples and many others, His disciples will see JESUS ascend to heaven. JESUS will ascend into heaven to present HIMSELF to GOD the FATHER,  with HIS BLOOD, seeking GOD’S approval of HIS sacrifice for us. GOD accepts JESUS as the First Fruit of the Harvest of the world. Then JESUS took HIS place of honor at the right hand of GOD.  To be our intercessor between us and GOD. JESUS blood covers all our sins from GOD the FATHER, thus fulfilling the prophecy of the Feast of First Fruits. You count fifty days later is the Feast of Weeks. This is the wheat harvest, the second harvest of the year.

 

  HOW DID THEY CELEBRATE THE FEAST OF WEEKS (PENTECOST)?

 

       In Old Testament times, the Priest would go out to the fields to gather a small portion of the grain. They would make two loaves of bread with leavening (yeast). Then they would bring it into the temple and offer it to GOD. This was done by physically raising it up in the air to offer it to GOD. It is important to notice the bread had yeast in it. During Passover, we have the Feast of Unleavened Bread. In the Bible leavening or yeast represents Sin. The unleavened bread represents JESUS, who was without Sin (leavening). During the Feast of Weeks, the bread has leavening in it. This leavened bread represents us, we who are with Sin. The two loaves of bread represent the Jew and the Gentile because JESUS died for all, EVERYONE, no matter who you are, no matter what you have done. JESUS paid the price for ALL sin, past, present, and future. I like to think about how JESUS died for my sins before I was ever born! GOD accepts the wave offering and the animal sacrifices. Thus accepting the whole harvest. As in the barley harvest of First Fruits, The wheat harvest can now be completed because GOD has accepted it. Thus, when GOD accepts the wave offering,  HE accepts JESUS sacrifice for our sins at Calvary. The harvest of the world, mankind, is in the future, someday GOD will return to harvest us into heaven, to be with HiM for all eternity, if you have accepted JESUS as your Savior.

WHAT ABOUT PENTECOST?

 

   I know what your thinking, what does all this have to do with Pentecost, speaking in tongues, etc. Well, for the next forty days after Jesus was crucified, dead, and buried, HE arose from the dead and walked among us. He revealed HIMSELF to HIS disciples, we will pick up this teaching in the book of ACTS 1: 4-5&9 it says “And being assembled together with them, HE commanded them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the FATHER. Which HE said you have heard from ME; for John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. (verse 9) Now when HE had spoken these things, while they watched, HE was taken up, and a cloud received HIM out of their sight.” JESUS arose from the dead on Easter Sunday ( the day of the Feast of the First Fruits) Forty days later HE accented into heaven, He instructed HIS disciples to stay in Jerusalem. and wait for the Holy Spirit. This would be ten days later. At the Feast of weeks.

 

THE COMING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

 

There is three Feast each year that all Jews are required to go to Jerusalem and celebrate. They are the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Weeks, and the Feast of Booths. The Jews had been dispersed to all the known world at this time, by GOD. The Bible, in the book of Acts, lists between 15-20 different countries and regions from where the Jews came from to celebrate the Feast of Weeks. This meant that these Jews all spoke a different language.  This is extremely important to understand the true meaning of Pentecost. The disciples have returned to Jerusalem to wait for the Promised One! Acts  2:1-4 gives us the account of the coming of the Holy Spirit, “When the Day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

       WOW, what a lot to take in at one time! We have gone from the Old Testament Leviticus and the Feast of weeks to Pentecost and the giving of the Holy Spirit. God doesn’t do anything without a purpose!! When we study the bible and especially passage as this one we need to look deeply into what GOD is doing, what is the purpose of all this. First, remember this all happened fifty days from the Feast of First Fruit. From the time of the first Feast of the First Fruits to the time of Pentecost, a couple of thousand years have come to past. At the time when a  prophecy is given it may have a completely different meaning than it does at a later time. Moses was given the Law on Mt. Sinai, imbedded in the LAW was the procedure to worship GOD ( Leviticus 23). Moses, nor the Israelites knew it was also a prophecy concerning the future of the world.

    So what is the purpose and what is GOD up to? GOD had dispersed the Jews throughout the known world by the end of the Old Testament times. They took with them the knowledge of GOD and the Law. They established Temples though out the world. Now they have returned to celebrate the Feast of Weeks. But they all speak a different language, GOD needs to send them back to their homes throughout the world with the Gospel ( the good news of JESUS CHRIST). This will signal the beginning of the Church Age, the age we live in now.

THE DAY OF PENTECOST    THE COMING OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

          Let us look at the verses in the book of Acts 2:1-4  to gain an understanding of what happened and why. ” When the Day of Pentecost had fully come,”  meaning the fifty days had been completed. “They were all with one accord in one place.” They were following JESUS instructions to stay in Jerusalem and wait for the Promise of the Father, The baptism of the HOLY SPIRIT. The Bible does not say were in Jerusalem they waited, but I believe they were in the Temple. My reasoning is it is the Feast of Weeks, this Feast centered around the Temple. Verse 2 says; “And suddenly there came a sound from Heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.” This verse immediately brings a question to my mind; What does a sound from Heaven sound like? When studying the Bible pay close attention to words like as, appears, seem like, etc. The Disciples and Luke, the writer of the book of Acts, don’t know how to describe the sound they heard, they can only describe it with things known to them. They had never heard a sound from Heaven. Also, it says it filled the whole house. The greek word for house is  “Oikos” this word means home, house, or Temple, thus I believe they were in the Temple.  Verse 3 says:  ” Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.” Here we see the words appeared and as of. The disciple’s and Luke has no way to describe what they have seen that day, they can only describe what the saw using the knowledge they had at that time. How do you describe the Holy Spirit?  How do you describe a spirit? I don’t know!! I believe they saw The HOLY SPIRIT of GOD, It was a bright shining light, they were baptized in this bright shining light of THE HOLT SPIRIT of GOD.  Verse 4 says: “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”  I think the key verse here is ” as the Spirit gave them utterance “. It does not say all spoke but all were filled with the Holy Spirit, They only spoke as the Spirit gave them utterance.

  Okay, so that is Pentecost, that is were speaking in tongues comes from. What does it mean and why would GOD do this? Remember GOD does nothing without a purpose. This is the Feast of Weeks, all the Jews from all over the known world are in Jerusalem, they all speak a different language. How is GOD going to present the Gospel to them?  How is GOD going to present the Gospel to all the world? In Acts chapter 2 verse 6 it says ” And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.” Please stop and read Acts Chapter 2: 5-13. These verses will answer how GOD is going to present the Gospel to all in Jerusalem, no matter what language they speak!

   The rest of the chapter starting at verse 14 says; “But Peter, Standing up with the Eleven, raised his voice and said to them, Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and heed my words.” This is the first sermon preached by Peter to the forming Church of JESUS CHRIST! There would be about 3000 people saved that day. Peter stood up and began to speak in Hebrew, and the other disciples stood with peter. I believe the other Eleven acted as interpreters to all who did not speak Hebrew. Remember all the Jews from all around the known world were in Jerusalem. They had heard the Gospel and received it and took it back to their own country, spreading the Gospel to the known world.  Please read Acts2;14-47 This is the powerful sermon that Peter preached on that day of Pentecost.

THE CHURCH AGE

 

    This day of Pentecost marked the beginning of the Church Age we live in now. It will end when JESUS CHRIST comes back for his CHURCH and rapture it away to be with HIM forever and ever in Heaven. I hope and Pray you to know HIM as your Savior !!!