Pentecost or Shavuot?
What is Pentecost?
Pentecost is not a denomination or an esoteric emotional experience. It happens to be a mandated “Jewish Festival”, or actually a “Feast of the Lord”, that was commanded by the Lord for all Israel, and their righteous “converts” [or God-fearing Gentiles] to keep and celebrate. There are a total of seven holy convocations or festivals that God commanded Israel to keep. Three of them had to be kept by all adult males (from 13yrs. and up – after their Bar Mitzvah) as a pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
Whenever you see Yeshua in Yerushalayim (Jerusalem), it was usually on occasion to celebrate one of the biblical holidays as an observant Jew.
Leviticus 23 defines these 7 Feasts:
1. Passover (Pesach)
14th of Aviv / Nisan (1st month)
2. Feast of Unleavened Bread (Chag HaMatzot)
15th-21st of 1st month
3. Firstfruits (Yom Bikkurim)
16th of Aviv / Nisan (1st month)
4. Feast of Weeks (Shavuot) / “Pentecost”
6th of Sivan (3rd month)
5. Feast of Trumpets (Yom Teruah) / “Rosh HaShanah”
1st of Tishrei (7th month)
6. Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)
10th of Tishrei (7th month)
7. Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot)
15th-21st of Tishrei (7th month) with an extra an 8th day assembly
We have already celebrated as a local body of Messianic believers the first commanded festival, Passover (Pesach). What a wonderful celebration that was to honor the Lord’s “Last Supper” or Passover Seder, as has been kept by Israel for about 3500 years, since the exodus. Resurrection Sunday (mistakenly called by some as “Easter” [pagan fertility festival for the Babylonian goddess, Ishtar]) was the third festival, known as the Day of Firstfruits, was fulfilled on the third Day that our Messiah resurrected as our “Firstfruits from the Dead” (1 Cor. 15:12-23).
The next Festival to be fulfilled was the Feast of Weeks (Shavuot in Hebrew). “Pentecost” means “fiftieth day” or in Hebrew, Shavuot, meaning “weeks”. This holiday was celebrated 7 weeks after the Passover or the second of Unleavened Bread (Chag HaMatzot), called Firstfruits. The next day, which was the “Fiftieth Day” or “Pentecost” (Read Acts 2).
Jews and Messianic believers do a countdown to Shavuot (Pentecost) called the “Counting of the Omer”. The Omer was a measure of the Barley Harvest that was brought to the priests at the Temple in Jerusalem as a Firstfruit offering. This lasted until “Pentecost”, which started the Wheat Harvest (Matt. 24:30).
Leviticus 23:9
9 And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying,10 “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them:’When you come into the land which I give to you, and reap its harvest, then you shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your (barley) harvest to the priest.11 He shall wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted on your behalf; on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.
Yeshua used many Parables in connection to the yearly harvest of wheat at this time in reference to the harvest of souls for the Kingdom of God.
Remember the Passover was a holiday to remind God’s Chosen People of the great deliverance that happen in Egypt 3,500 years ago. 1,500 years later the Messiah fulfilled the Passover as a spiritual deliverance from “spiritual Egypt” (the World) and the “spiritual Pharoah” (Satan). That event had a similar countdown to Pentecost (Shavuot), were “devout Jews” from every region came to celebrate this Jewish Festival.
Acts 2:1-6
1 Now when the Day of Pentecost [Shavuot] had fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. 5 And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under heaven. 6 And when this sound occurred, the multitude came together, and were confused, because everyone heard them speak in his own language.
Other than an annual connection to the harvest of barley and wheat, Pentecost has another important event to remember. After the Exodus from Egypt in the “new” 1st month of the year (Exodus 12:1-14), Israel began to travel to Mount Sinai with Moses as their leader. After having arrived to the base of the mountain, the people assembled in “one accord” to hear the “Sound from Heaven”. This was the same day that Israel was commanded to celebrate the “Feast of Weeks”, Shavuot (“Pentecost”). The same day that Moses was given the Ten Commandments from God.
So Pentecost is really the giving of the “Letter of the Law” on tablets of stone, the first principles of the oracles of HaShem. Likewise, 1,500 years later Israel and all fellow believers received the “Spirit of the Law”, God’s Hoy Spirit, as the same commandments were written on the tablets of their hearts.
2 Cor 3:2-8
2 You are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read by all men; 3 clearly you are an epistle of Christ, ministered by us, written not with ink but by the Spirit of the living God, not on tablets of stone but on tablets of flesh, that is, of the heart. 4 And we have such trust through Christ toward God. 5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think of anything as being from ourselves, but our sufficiency is from God, 6 who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. 7 But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away, 8 how will the ministry of the Spirit not be more glorious?
In the Jewish Calendar this is celebrated today on Wednesday, May 19th [starting Tuesday night at sundown], since it changes every year based upon the lunar calendar, while the Christian observance of this day is traditionally locked to the 7th Sunday after Resurrection. The year of Messiah’s death and resurrection happened to fall that year on a Sunday. Which has become the Christian Tradition ever since.
Today, May 19th is Shavuot, the day that commemorates the giving of the Torah (Law of Moses) and the giving of the Holy Spirit (the Spirit of the Law). Let’s enjoy the wonderful spiritual blessing that we have received as God’s People and celebrate this holiday as a “Holy-day” unto HaShem. Let the outpouring of God’s Spirit [Ruach Elohim]infill you and teach you the about harvest of blessings that we can experience, the very “Word of God” that was given to us from Sinai, as if we were receiving it for the first time, TODAY!
Chag Sameach!
Happy Holiday for the “Feast of Weeks” (Shavuot), or Pentecost!
Shalom from Rabbi Brian & Magali Bileci
May 23rd, 2010 at 2:01 pm
What a wonderful time we had, our first Shavuot gathering in our own place. The teaching was as always GREAT!! Rabbi Brian is a blessing from the Lord and so is our new building, look forward to many more Feasts of the Lord as we celebrate together in ECHAD…Baruach Hashem!!!!! Freda