PENTECOST -- A REVEALING BEGINNING "And when the day of Pentecost was 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 all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." (Acts 2:1-4) -- Tomorrow:
Devotion 4 of 28
PENTECOST FULLY COME
"And when the day of Pentecost was fully come . . . "
In order to appreciate this text, one must have some understanding of the prefigurements God instituted under the Law. These prefigurements, or foreshadowings, were included in, what is called, the ceremonial Law. That is, these were not the laws that were written upon the tables of stone, which were "the words of the covenant" (Ex 34:28). They were not a moral code, as ordinarily conceived, but one of ceremony or disciplined routine. It was within the framework of these God-ordained ceremonies that certain conduct was imposed upon Israel. This imposition was required for at least two reasons. First, because Israel did not have a circumcised heart. For this reason they were fundamentally rebellious and wayward (Deut 9:24). This condition necessitated particularization concerning their conduct. Second, these ceremonies contained types and shadows of the redemption that would be realized in Christ Jesus. They provided a means through which the people could become acquainted with such things as atonement, redemption, sacrifice, offering to God, and other related matters.
Of particular note was the requirement to observe three annual feasts. These were special occasions that were to be attended by all of the males of the congregation. Thus it was written, "Thrice in the year shall all your men children appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel. For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders: neither shall any man desire thy land, when thou shalt go up to appear before the LORD thy God thrice in the year" (Exodus 34:23-24). The three occasions involved feasts, which are also specified. "Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in (1) the feast of unleavened bread, and in (2) the feast of weeks, and in (3) the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty" (Deut 16:16).
THE PASSOVER. "The feast of unleavened bread" was identified with the "Passover," and was instituted the night Israel was delivered from Egyptian bondage. On that night it was said, "And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever" (Exodus 12:17). It was codified under the Law, and was the first of the three annual feasts to be observed (Ex 23:15). The feast lasted seven days, and was held in commemoration of Israel's deliverance from Egypt: "The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time of the month Abib: for in the month Abib thou camest out from Egypt" (Ex 34:18; Lev 23:6). This feast was tied to the Passover, which occurred on the fourteenth day of the month, with the feast of unleavened bread beginning on the fifteenth day (Lev 23:5-6; 2 Chron 35:17). This association is clearly made by Ezekiel the prophet: "In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten" (Ezek 45:21).
When Jesus dwelt among men, He observed the Passover feast, and it was associated with "the feast of unleavened bread." As it is written, "Now the first day of the feast of unleavened bread the disciples came to Jesus, saying unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare for thee to eat the Passover?" (Matt 26:17). Mark 14:1 refers to "the feast of the passover, and of unleavened bread." Mark 14:12 reminds us, "the first day of unleavened bread, when they killed the passover." Luke 22:1 reads, "Now the feast of unleavened bread drew nigh, which is called the Passover" (Luke 22:1). This should be sufficient to establish the fact.
THE FEAST OF HARVEST. This was the second annual feast, during which the firstfruits were reaped (Ex 23:16). It is also referred to as "the feast of weeks," because of the manner in which the time of its observance was calculated (Ex 34:22; Deut 16:10,16; 2 Chron 8:13). I will comment on this day more extensively after this introduction.
THE FEAST OF TABERNACLES. This is the third feast, and primarily referred to as "the feast of tabernacles" (Lev 23:34; Deut 16:13,16; John 7:2). It is also referred to as "the feast of ingathering" (Ex 23:16; 34:22). Nehemiah referred to it as the time during which Israel dwelt in "booths" made of branches (Neh 8:14-17; Lev 23:40-43). It also lasted seven days (Lev 23:39), and took place at "the end of the year," when all of the crops were gathered in from the fields (Ex 23:16). Thus, in these three feasts we have a marvelous depiction of the salvation of God.
First, there is a sacrifice and deliverance. Just as surely as Israel had a passover lamb, so Christ is "our Passover," having been "sacrificed for us" (1 Cor 5:7). Just as Israel was delivered from a prolonged bondage over which they had no power, so we have been delivered from this present evil world (Gal 1:4), saved from our sins (Matt 1:21), and rescued from the prince of the power of the air (Eph 2:2).
Second, just as there was a celebration of the harvest of firstfruits – a pledge of the full harvest to come – so in Christ there has been an initial reaping of genuine fruits. This took place on the day of Pentecost, during which both the nature and the effectiveness of the sacrifice for sin was confirmed. The caliber of the spiritual grain was revealed at that time, as well as the sureness of the harvest.
Third, there will be a final harvest in which the thorough field will be reaped, and the grain gathered into the everlasting garner. See, it is all revealed in those three annual feasts of Israel. In them is encapsulated the whole of the salvation that is in Christ Jesus, and will be carried out to the finest detail.
PRAYER POINT: Father, in the name of Jesus, I thank You for revealing something of the magnitude of Your great salvation.