Sunday June 8 is Pentecost, the fourth of the seven Feasts of the LORD

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Tomorrow is Pentecost Sunday in the Christian church. But Pentecost has been around a lot longer than Christianity (Tweet that!), as we've been learning over these past two weeks on this blog.

On the Hebrew calendar tomorrow, Pentecost, is the 50^th day of counting the omer (the sheaf). (Tweet that!) 

Shavuot Eve begins today. Tomorrow is the first day of Shavuot. Monday is the second day of Shavuot.

According to the teaching of Mark Biltz, who has taught me so much through his interviews and DVD set on the Feasts of the LORD, the forty-nine days counting from the Feast of Firstfruits (back near Easter) to the Feast of Weeks, which is Pentecost, in Israel is a time of spiritual introspection. (Tweet that!) 

I love that God gave us holidays. To stop. To remember what He has done. And to give us reason to look inward to consider the state of our souls.  (Tweet that!) We would each do well to regularly take such an observance.

I hope you have learned a lot about Pentecost through these posts. I also hope you will think about the spiritual significance of this fourth of the seven Feasts of the LORD tomorrow. (Tweet that!) Thank you for joining me. Enjoy your Pentecost.

Related Articles:

If you missed any of this series, here are the recent posts on Pentecost:

• Saturday, May 24 - 35 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost
• Tuesday, May 27 - 38 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - PentecostBefore the book of Acts
• Thursday, May 29 - 40 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost - The Second Feasts that Required Attendance
• Saturday, May 31 - 42 Omer - Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Counting 50 to the Year of Jubilee - Part 1
• Tuesday, June 3 - 45 Omer - Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Counting 50 to the Year of Jubilee  - Part 2
• Thursday, June 5 - 47 Omer - Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Reading Ruth

Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Reading Ruth

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In Hebrew, Pentecost is called Shavuot. It is pronounced as three syllables, like shaw-voo-oat. 

The Hebrew word means "weeks" and this is why we sometimes call Pentecost "The Feast of Weeks." This comes from counting off seven weeks from the Feast of Firstfruits, which, of course, is forty-nine days, and the next day, the fiftieth, is Pentecost or Shavuot. (Tweet that!) 

In Israel, Shavuot is celebrated by reading Exodus 19 – 20, which is the account of God giving the Torah, or the Law. (See the May 27, 2014, post: 38 Omer – Feast of the Lord #4 – Pentecost Before the book of Acts. Link below.)

Also, in Israel it is traditional to read the book of Ruth to celebrate Shavuot. (Tweet that!) This is because we are counting up fifty days from the harvest of Firstfruits, which was the barley harvest, to the wheat harvest. (Tweet that!)  Sheaves of these grains were waved by the priests during the celebration at the Tabernacle or Temple.

If you're familiar with the story in Ruth, you know she was gleaning grain for her and her mother-in-law to eat from the fields of Boaz. Ruth was gleaning from the barley to the wheat harvest.

Also, if you remember our discussion about the Year of Jubilee Part 1, on May 31, 2014, we talked about God's instructions that if a person could not redeem his own land, a relative could redeem the land for him. This person would be the kinsman redeemer. This is what Boaz did for Naomi and for Ruth. He redeemed their land, and he married Ruth and took care of her.  (Tweet that!) 

Ruth then became the great-grandmother of King David, earthly ancestor of Jesus Christ, and is one of only three women listed in the genealogy of Jesus.  (Tweet that!) 

The Kinsman Redeemer is a picture of what Jesus has done for all who believe in him as Messiah: He buys us back. He redeems us. He takes us to be his bride. He has redeemed a "land" for us which is heaven and we will live there with him forever.  (Tweet that!)

Why not take the time to read the book of Ruth in the coming days with this new, or reviewed, information?

If you don't have your own Bible handy, read it on BibleGateway.com here: Ruth.

Related Articles:

• Saturday, May 24 - 35 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost
• Tuesday, May 27 - 38 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost Before the book of Acts
• Thursday, May 29 - 40 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost - The Second Feasts that Required Attendance
• Saturday, May 31 - 42 Omer - Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Counting 50 to the Year of Jubliee - Part 1
• Tuesday, June 3 - 45 Omer - Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Counting 50 to the Year of Jubliee  - Part 2

Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Counting 50 to the Year of Jubilee - Part 2

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Did you know the Year of Jubilee can only be proclaimed to begin on the Day of Atonement? (Tweet that!) In Hebrew the Day of Atonement is called Yom Kippur. 

God gave these instructions through Moses in Leviticus 25:8-10:

You shall count seven weeks of years, seven times seven years, so that the time of the seven weeks of years shall give you forty-nine years. Then you shall sound the loud trumpet on the tenth day of the seventh month. On the Day of Atonement you shall sound the trumpet throughout all your land. And you shall consecrate the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you, when each of you shall return to his property and each of you shall return to his clan.

The Day of Atonement is the 10^th of Tishrei on the Hebrew calendar. This year in 2014, that is October 4^th and we will talk more about the Day of Atonement as we approach that date. (Tweet that!)

The Day of Atonement is the sixth of the seven Feasts of the LORD. When this day is proclaimed, the trumpet is sounded in Israel. (Tweet that!)

According to the teaching of Mark Biltz, when Jesus stood up and read Isaiah 61:1-2, he was proclaiming the Year of Jubilee. (Tweet that!)

And Jesus returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee, and a report about him went out through all the surrounding country. And he taught in their synagogues, being glorified by all. 

And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up. And as was his custom, he went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and he stood up to read. And the scroll of the prophet Isaiah was given to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written, 

"The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,    because he has anointed me    to proclaim good news to the poor.He has sent me to proclaim liberty to the captives    and recovering of sight to the blind,    to set at liberty those who are oppressed,to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor."

And he rolled up the scroll and gave it back to the attendant and sat down. And the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed on him. And he began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing" (Luke 4:14-21, ESV).

Jesus stunned the people when he announced that he was fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah 61:1-2 right before their very eyes. (Tweet that!) For more on Jesus fulfilling this prophecy see chapter 10 in my newest book, Prophecies Fulfilled in the Life of Jesus. (Tweet that!)

Related Articles:

• Saturday, May 24 - 35 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost
• Tuesday, May 27 - 38 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost Before the book of Acts
• Thursday, May 29 - 40 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost - The Second Feasts that Required Attendance
• Saturday, May 31 - 42 Omer - Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Counting 50 to the Year of Jubliee - Part 1

Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost - Counting 50 to the Year of Jubilee - Part 1

Morguefile.com

The counting of the omer, or the count-up to Pentecost, is not the only thing that is counted in 50s in the Bible. You may have heard of the Year of Jubilee, which was celebrated every 50 years in Israel.

When the Israelites came in to the Promised Land, God told them through Moses that they were to work the ground as farmers and take crops for six years, and the seventh year the land was to observe a Sabbath rest. (See Leviticus 25:1-7.)

Furthermore, the Israelites were then to count off seven Sabbath years, or seven groups of seven years which equals forty-nine years, and the next year, the fiftieth, was proclaimed to be the Year of Jubilee.

What happened in the Year of Jubilee? (Tweet that!) In the instructions God gave through Moses in Leviticus 25:8-55:

• All property that was bought or sold during the past 49 years returned to the original owner. The price had been set according to how many years before this occurred. 
• Anyone who had become poor and became a hired worked (not a slave – Israelites could not take Israelites as slaves), was to be released to return home to his own clan in the Year of Jubliee.

Debts were forgiven and slaves were set free in the Year of Jubilee. (Tweet that!) 

When land was sold, a person had a right to re-purchase or "redeem" that land. If he was too poor to do so, a relative, or "kinsman," of his could buy it for him to keep it in the family. This is where the "right of redemption" (of land) and the idea of the "kinsman redeemer" come from. We see the "kinsman redeemer" displayed in the book of Ruth as Boaz does this for Naomi and her son's widow, Ruth. (Tweet that!) 

You might wonder why God instructed all of this. It is because the land of Israel belongs to Him and is never to be sold permanently.

The land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for the land is mine. For you are strangers and sojourners with me (Leviticus 25:23).

Furthermore, the people of Israel were freed from slavery in Egypt and were never to be slaves again. They are free forever.

Why did God give these regulations? So that the Promised Land of Israel would never leave Israeli possession and so the people would be forever free. (Tweet that!) 

This is a picture of heaven: it is owned by God, it will always be there, and the people who reside in heaven will be free of sin and slavery forever. (Tweet that!)  Isn't that a beautiful picture?

Related Articles:

• Saturday, May 24 - 35 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost
• Tuesday, May 27 - 38 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost Before the book of Acts
• Thursday, May 29 - 40 Omer - Feast of the Lord #4 - Pentecost - The Second Feasts that Required Attendance

Feast of the Lord #4 – Pentecost Before the book of Acts

Morguefile.com

When Christians hear the word "Pentecost," what springs to our minds is what is described in the book of Acts 2. After Jesus was crucified and then amazingly resurrected, he spoke to his disciples and told them to stay in Jerusalem until they received the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Once when he was eating with them, he commanded them, "Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the gift he promised, as I told you before. John baptized with water, but in just a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit" (Acts 1:4-5, NLT).

But did you know the Jewish people had been keeping the Feast of Pentecost for 1,500 years before this Pentecost in Acts? (Tweet that!) 

Yes, Pentecost was one of the seven Feasts of the LORD given to Moses. (Tweet that!) We discussed all seven of the Feasts of the LORD in the blog post on April 11, 2014.

According to the teaching of Mark Biltz at El Shaddai Ministries, on Pentecost the Jewish people celebrate the giving of the Torah (the Law) on Mount Sinai. (Tweet that!) 

This is when God wrote His law in stone on the tablets of the Ten Commandments. And they have observed Pentecost fifty days after the Feast of Firstfruits ever since.  (Tweet that!) Christians only came on board with Pentecost after Jesus was resurrected, meaning the story in Acts 2. (Tweet that!) 

Interestingly, in the Old Testament (after Moses but before Jesus), God said through the prophet Ezekiel:

And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules (Ezekiel 36:26-27, ESV).

See also Ezekiel 11:19.

On Pentecost, the Jewish people remember, observe, and celebrate the giving of the Law, written on their hearts and in stone on the tablets of the Ten Commandments. (Tweet that!)  Today, Christians remember, observe, and celebrate the giving of the Holy Spirit, poured out on followers of Jesus, transforming our hearts of stone to hearts of pliable, teachable flesh. (Tweet that!) 

On the first Pentecost after Jesus' death and resurrection, God fulfilled His prophecy in Ezekiel 36:26-17 and 11:19. He transformed the Law written on stone in the hearts of His people to new human hearts of flesh led by the Spirit. This is the historical as well as the prophetic meaning of the Feast of Weeks, known as Pentecost. (Tweet that!) 

Related Article:

• May 24 – 35 Omer – Feast of the Lord #4 – Pentecost

The Feast of the LORD #4 - Pentecost

Morguefile.com

If you've been reading this blog from the beginning, you know we started with a 40-day countdown during Lent which begins on Ash Wednesday. Actually, we started the blog with an introduction to the blog on March 2, 2014, and article introducing our countdown to Easter, and then an article on Shrove Tuesday, which precedes Ash Wednesday.

Leading up to Easter, we talked about the prophetic significance of the seven Feasts of the LORD. 

The first three Feasts are:

• Passover 
• The Feast of Unleavened Bread 
• The Feast of Firstfruits 

You may have forgotten, but we're in another countdown right now to Feast #4, which is Pentecost. (Tweet that!) So in these posts this week and next during these days leading up to its observance on Sunday June 9, we're going to talk about what Pentecost is historically.

Actually it would be more accurate to say we're on a count up, but let's get to that in a moment. First, some background information.

On the Jewish calendar, we are currently "Counting the Omer." The omer is the Hebrew word for "sheaf." (Tweet that!) We're talking about sheaves of grains, of course, but sheaves can also be personified as people.

Back during the three feasts we observed near the Christian celebration of Easter and the Jewish Passover, the third Feast was the Feast of Firstfruits. This celebrated the early harvest, when the barley is harvested. (Tweet that!) We are now counting up to another harvest: the wheat harvest. (Tweet that!)

From the Feast of Firstfruits, God instructed the Jewish people to count seven weeks (of seven days), which is of course 49 days. The following day, which is the 50^th, is the Feast of Pentecost.

Of course we know penta means five, as in the Pentagon has five sides and a pentagram is a five-pointed star.

It is interesting to note that in the Counting of the Omer, the Jewish people count up, not down. (Tweet that!)

We usually count down to important events. As children we know it's twenty-four days to Christmas. Or ten days to our birthday. We count down to the event as we did in our 40-day countdown through Lent to Easter in March and April on this blog.

But those who observe the "Counting of the Omer" count up to Pentecost. So we started counting the omer on the Feast of Firstfruits, which this year was Sunday, April 20^th. And while you may not have known it, we've been counting up all this time. (Tweet that!) Today is the 35^th day of the omer.

On my Jewish calendar. which I got from El Shaddai Ministries, it is noted that today is "35 Omer."

There is a lot more for us to learn about the fourth Feast of the LORD, Pentecost. So through the next two weeks we'll explore the Jewish roots and insights of this Feast. In my next post we'll look at Pentecost before the events of the Pentecost Christians usually think of when the Holy Spirit was poured out in Acts 2.