Pentecost Celebrates the Birth of the Church

By Larry J. Walker

United Church of God, Bend

Celebrating special occasions has long been a hallmark of our culture as witnessed by the fact that this custom has spawned a multimillion dollar greeting card industry by that name. We celebrate personal events such as birthdays and wedding anniversaries. National holidays commemorate milestones of our history, such as Independence Day. Certain days in the year are set aside to honor special people such as mothers, fathers, presidents and veterans. Memorial Day this past Monday is a prime example.

God gave the ancient nation of Israel special days to commemorate important events in their history. Passover celebrates God's deliverance of Israel from Egyptian slavery (Exodus 12-13). The Feast of Tabernacles was observed by living in "booths" for seven days as a reminder of the temporary circumstances of life during the journey of these exiles traveling to the promised land of Canaan (Leviticus 23:39-43). This special Holy Day period was also known as "the Feast of Ingathering" to express thanksgiving for the bounties of the fall harvest (Deuteronomy 16:13-15).

Harvest festivals are still common today in the United States and other nations. According to The Expositor's Bible Dictionary, "the Feast of Booths was an occasion of joy--a thanksgiving day. Indeed, it is clear that when the Puritans proclaimed their Thanksgiving Day in New England, they had in mind the OT harvest festival."

The Feast of Harvest in the spring (also known as "the Feast of Weeks") celebrated the early grain harvest in Israel (Exodus 23:14-17; 34:21-23). It was one of the three annual pilgrimage festivals in addition to the Feast of Tabernacles and the Days of Unleavened Bread, a seven day period immediately following Passover that also emphasized God's powerful deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt.

The name "Feast of Weeks" derives its name from a unique aspect of this day that sets it apart from all the others. The date of celebration was to be counted from the weekly Sabbath during the Days of Unleavened Bread (Leviticus 23:15-16).

Celebrating special events is on my mind today, not just because I turned 65 a couple weeks ago (Actually, I would rather not think about that!), but because I look forward to celebrating another "birthday" this Sunday. The New Testament Church began with the special arrival of the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost nearly 2000 years ago (Acts 2:1-4, 38-47).

Pentecost (which means "fiftieth" in Greek) is the New Testament name for the Feast of Weeks, so called because it is to be celebrated on the fiftieth day from the weekly Sabbath during the Days of Unleavened Bread.

As is the case with all of the Holy Days of the Bible that offer "a shadow of things to come" in the plan of God (Colossians 2:16-17), Pentecost is rich with meanings for us today. It celebrates the fact that we have received "the firstfruits of the Spirit" (Romans 8:23) and that God's people are "firstfruits" of God's spiritual creation (James 1:18) in anticipation of a special spiritual harvest yet to be reaped. In fact God has a much larger harvest in mind even beyond this early "firstfruits" harvest.

Ever since living in Central Oregon I have met with United Church of God congregations from all over Oregon to celebrate this day at special combined services in Albany, so we do not hold Pentecost services here in Central Oregon. Otherwise, I would invite you to attend to learn more of the important meanings of this Holy Day.

What I can do is to invite you to visit our web site (www.ucgbend.org) for more information. We have free articles and booklets about the Holy Days and related topics. You can also download audio recordings of the five-part Bible study and discussion series that I recently conducted titled "Biblical Holy Days-- God's Teaching Template."

So although we won't be able to be together to celebrate the birthday of the Church, I offer you the special birthday gift of material to help you understand and appreciate the meanings and significance of the Day of Pentecost and the other Holy Days of the Bible. Jesus kept them. So did Paul and the early Church. So do many Christians today. I encourage you to find out why.