Elohim had intended to deliver the children of Israel from slavery and prepare them to receive His Torah on Mount Sinai, hence the connection between Passover and Shavuot. The children of Israel were so eager to receive the Torah that after their miraculous deliverance from Egypt, they began counting days to Shavuot. Shavuot means “weeks.” It marks the completion of the seven-week counting period between Passover and Shavuot. This practice is customary known as ‘counting the Omer’. A special prayer and blessing is proclaimed on each of the 49 days as count down of the Omer progresses to the fiftieth day. Counting starts from the second day of Passover (16 th Nisan) to the day before Shavuot, 49 days or 7 full weeks. "And you shall count unto you from the morrow of the day of rest ('Shabbat'), from the day that you brought the sheaf ('omer') of the waving; there shall be seven complete weeks" (Leviticus 23:15).
The 50 th day is the Shavuot also known as Pentecost and falls on Sivan 6 (the third biblical month). The one-day holiday, begins at sundown of 5th of Sivan and lasts until nightfall of 6th of Sivan. It is a day of solemn rest where believers are expected to cease from ordinary work. Leviticus 23:21 “And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be a statute forever in all your dwellings throughout your generations”.
Having received salvation, we become grafted into the commonwealth of Israel. According to Apostle Peter, we are a holy nation, separate from the heathen. That is why we ought to obey the word of God by keeping the biblical feasts, as outlined in the book of Leviticus 23.
Pentecost is one of the three feasts when we are required to present ourselves before God. “Three times in the year you shall keep a feast to me. You shall keep the feast of the Unleavened Bread….you shall keep the feast of Harvest of the first fruits of your labor, of what you sow in the field. You shall keep the feast of Ingathering at the end of the year…Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Lord God…” Exodus 23: 14-17.
The counting reminds us of the important connection between Passover and Shavuot: Passover symbolized the physical liberation of Israelites from bondage in Egypt, just like we have been redeemed from the bondage of sins. The promise of the Holy Spirit was fulfilled to the early church on the day of Pentecost. After the apostles received the Holy Spirit, they were no longer afraid to preach the gospel. They fearlessly testified about the risen Messiah regardless of the many threats and persecutions that they faced. Similarly we need the Holy Spirit of God to be able to live a righteous and fruitful life. Shavuot is a day to have delight in the law of God as well as pray for the overpowering of the Holy Spirit into our lives.
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