Last night, Tuesday, May 30 at 7 p.m., we celebrated Shavuot (Pentecost). We counted the omer and anxiously waited for this moment. Each day brought us closer to the expectation of God’s promised revelation and renewal. We believed for echoes of the first Shavuot at Mount Sinai and the first Shavuot at the Temple in Jerusalem, ten days after Yeshua (Jesus) had ascended to heaven. Both events included heavenly fire, noise and extraordinary phenomena. At the original Shavuot, the people of Israel stood before the Lord at Sinai, and the Lord called them to be a holy nation before Him: “All the people answered together and said, “We will do everything that the Lord has spoken'” (Ex. 19:8).
The instructions to count seven complete weeks (fifty days) “from the day after the Sabbath, from the day when you brought in the sheaf (tied bundle of grain) of the wave offering”, to the day after the seventh week, are found in Leviticus 23:15-16. The omer (sheaf) counting began as an agricultural commandment to wave the first fruits of the barley harvest. Symbolically, it points to Yeshua who is the first fruit of the dead through His resurrection. Spiritually, it is a time of “cheshbon” or spiritual accounting. For 50 days, we elevate to God all the different attributes of our personality and examine our ways to see if we are truly following the commandment to “love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind” and to “love your neighbor as yourself.”
Shavuot (Weeks) is one of the most important times in Jewish history. It is one of the three major religious and agricultural festivals (Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot, or Tabernacles) of which, the Lord has commanded us to make the pilgrimage to the temple in Jerusalem and bring a special sacrifice offering to Him. It is the time, 3500 years ago, that God gave the Torah to the Jewish people (and those of the nations that feared God and wanted to stand at Mt. Sinai with His people), and it is the time 2,000 years ago that God gave the Holy Spirit (Ruach ha-Kodesh) to the Jewish people (and those of the nations) who believed that Yeshua (Jesus) was the Messiah. At this appointed time (moed), a new grain offering was presented to the Lord, and two loaves of bread were waved before Him (Lev. 23:17). Many believe that the two leavened loaves represent the Jew and the Gentile.
After Yeshua ascended to the heavens on the 40th day of the counting of the omer, His followers returned to Jerusalem. There they continued in prayer and supplication “with one accord” (Acts 1:14). Ten days later, when Shavuot arrived, they were still “with one accord” in one place (Acts 2:1). There, the Spirit was poured out upon the disciples in the sight of all the Jewish people gathered for the festival. Simon Peter declared this outpouring to be the work of Yeshua, the risen Messiah. Thousands of Jewish worshipers repented of their sins and became followers of Yeshua. They joined the messianic community and continued daily “with one accord,” worshiping in the temple and meeting together from house to house (Acts 2:46).
“When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. 2 Suddenly a sound like a mighty rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 There appeared to them tongues as of fire, being distributed and resting on each of them, 4 and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit enabled them to speak” (Acts 2:1-4)
“Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all who are far away, as many as the Lord our God will call.'”
(Acts 2:38-39)
The story of Ruth is read at this special time. Rabbinic writings of antiquity believe that King David was born and died on Shavuot so it makes sense that we would read and study about his ancestry. Nevertheless, the book of Ruth speaks about the beautiful relationships between Ruth and Naomi and Ruth and Boaz. This presents a symbolic and prophetic story of the dispersion of the Jewish people into the diaspora generations ago, followed by the redemption of Israel.
As Yeshua spreads out his tallit upon all who believe in Him, there will be a crossing over of cultures, languages and traditions. Under His tallit we will come together as one. He will look with favor upon us and transform us unto dynamos of spiritual impact. Together we will become the “one new man” prophesied by Rabbi Shaul (Paul, Eph. 2:15).
Chag Sameach (Happy Holiday)! {eoa}
Dr. Charlie Kluge began his professional ministry career in 1986 with his wife, Racquel. He is senior rabbi of Congregation Gesher Shalom in Orlando, Florida, and has planted two other congregations. A well-known conference speaker, both nationally and internationally, Kluge serves on the Executive Committee of the Messianic Jewish Alliance of Ammerica and was president from 2003-2007. Kluge holds a doctorate in optometry, a bachelor’s degree in psychology and in physical and chemical sciences. He recently wrote a book called The Tallit: Experience the Mysteries of the Prayer Shawl and Other Hidden Treasures, published by Charisma House.
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