Pentecost or Shavuot is a Holy Feast, also
known as the Feast of Weeks, that celebrates God giving of the Torah to the
Jewish people. The Torah—the first five books of the Old Testament—is to guide
all of us in how we are to live in the world. Exodus 23:16 give us instructions
for Shavuot which is established in Deuteronomy 16:9-10. It is a harvest
festival in which the Israelites were to offer a freewill contribution to the
Lord marking the fruitful grain harvest. It occurred on Pentecost, 50 days
after Passover.
As a fulfillment of the Old Testament, a
spiritual harvest began on Pentecost when Jesus told the disciples to wait in
Jerusalem for the gift of Holy Spirit as God the Father had promised (Acts
1:4-5). The disciples began to speak in languages of visitors from every nation—with
the power of the Holy Spirit—so that everyone could understand God’s message in
their own language. There were about three thousand people in Jerusalem that
day who believed in Jesus and were baptized after they heard Peter preach following
his infilling of the Holy Spirit. Three thousand! That is a lot of people—more than
the population in the small farming community in which I grew up.
Part of what Peter preached was from the
Old Testament prophet, Joel:
'In the last days,' God says, 'I will pour
out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your
young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams. In those days I
will pour out my Spirit even on my servants--men and women alike--and they will
prophesy. And I will cause wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth
below--blood and fire and clouds of smoke. The sun will become dark, and the
moon will turn blood red before that great and glorious day of the LORD
arrives. But everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.' Acts
2:17-21 NLT
Things may get a little scary in the last
days…smoke and fire…the sun darkened and the moon looking blood red. But don’t
be alarmed. God will be with us—He will never leave us or forsake us (Hebrews
13:5). Keep your account short—confess your shortcomings—your sins—daily and be
at peace with the Lord. Be prepared for those last days. Claim that promise in
Joel—repeated in Acts 2… But everyone who
calls on the name of the LORD will be saved. Like those visitors to
Jerusalem, are you calling on the name of the Lord? Are you or will you be
saved?
Prayer
~ Holy Spirit—I call on You—as well as my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, confessing
that He is my Savior. It is in obedience that I work out my salvation with fear
and trembling; for it is God who is at work in me, both to will and to work for
His good pleasure. Philippians 2:12-13.
Friday’s Feast at the Lord’s Table
It is Friday—again! Where has this week
gone? Out to the garden or to Farmers’ Market for more fresh cucumbers. There has
been a salmonella scare recently, but if you are using fresh homegrown produce
or obtaining your vegetables from a local source there should not be a problem.
Be sure to wash any produce well or even soak it in a vinegar solution for a
few minutes before using it.
Cucumber Salad
Wash, peel and slice thinly a large fresh
cucumber. Stir in about ¼ cup of mayonnaise or more so that all the slices of
cucumber are lightly coated. Sprinkle on about a teaspoon of fresh dill or
about ½ tsp dry dill. Stir well and serve.
© 2015 by Mickey
M. Hunacek. All rights reserved.
All
scripture quoted from the New American Standard Bible (NASB) unless otherwise
noted.
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