Shavou’ot / Pentecost- Feast of Weeks
Shavou’ot / Pentecost
This Sunday marks the passing of 50 days since the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Resurrection Sunday just happens to fall on the biblical feast of First Fruits. Jesus was crucified on the day of Passover (Pesach), the fourteenth of Nisan, and He arose from the grave three days and nights after He was slain, Jesus (Yeshua) arose from the grave on the seventeenth of Nisan, the day of the festival of First Fruits. This day would be the day after the weekly sabbath during the week of Passover (Mark 16:1-6). In fact, Jesus is called the first fruits of those who rise from the dead.
Many in the church recognize the day of Pentecost but fail to connect it to the biblical feast of Shavou’ot. This was the biblical day when the Lord spoke the word of God, including the ten commandments to the people of Israel. It was this day, as the apostles waited as the Lord instructed, that the Holy Spirit was poured out. These two events are joined as one in the Lord.
Jesus told the woman at the well that there would be a day when believers would worship God in spirit and in truth. The two should never be separated. God gave us His word to live by, we are not saved by our works but we are saved to do good works. The bible also tells us that it is impossible to understand His word without His Spirit. The Lord set His Spirit into the world to testify of His great deeds. Without the Spirit of God, preaching is of no effect and the hearing is no effect.
The Spirit of God was poured out on Mt Sinai with speaking of His word and the Holy Spirit was poured out on that day of Pentecost following the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. That same Spirit is available to us today when we ask Jesus to be our Lord and Savior, He will also give us a fresh outpouring when we ask of Him. Paul told us to not be drunk with wine, but to be drunk with the Holy Spirit. When is the last time you pulled an all niter with the Lord? Did you know the tradition for Pentecost is to have a marathon bible reading? I believe that the disciples were doing just that as Pentecost approached.
