Spiritual Application.  The giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai involved the Aaronic priesthood, the sacrificial system, the tabernacle, the Sabbath days, the festivals, the civil and ceremonial laws, and the Ten Commandments (Ex. 19:17-20; 20:1,2122; 21:1-2,12; 22:1,16; 23:10-11,14; 24:1-8,12,18; 25:1, 8-9,40: 28:1; 31:12-18; 32:1; 34:27-28; Heb. 8:1-6; 9:1-12,15,18-24; 10:1,10; 13:20).  These things were given by God as a shadow of things to come (Heb. 10:1) to teach us (Gal. 3:24) about Jesus and the redemptive work of God (Col. 2:16-17).  Pentecost was the birth of the congregation in the wilderness (Acts 7:38).  The things given at Mount Sinai were divine and from God, but shown in a physical way (Heb. 9:1) to enable us to understand the spiritual truths that God wanted to communicate to us (1 Pet. 2:5-9).  So God gave Israel the covenant, the Torah, the services, the oracles of God, and the promises (Rom. 9:4-5; 3:2), which were divine (Heb. 9:1), at Mount Sinai to teach us about the Messiah (Psa. 40:7)..

What were the spiritual understandings that God was communicating to us at Pentecost?

THE TWO LEAVENED WAVE LOAVES (Lev. 23:15-17)

This was to be a new meal offering to the Lord (Lev. 23:16; Num. 28:26).  There were to be two wave loaves baked with leaven (Lev. 23:17). At Passover, leaven was absolutely forbidden (Ex. 12:15,19-20) and in the regular meal offering, no leaven was permitted (Lev. 2:1,4-5,11).  We know that leaven represents sin (1 Cor. 5:6-8; Gal. 5:9).  Passover and Unleavened Bread spoke of the death and burial of Jesus who was without sin.  Yet on Pentecost, God commanded just the opposite.  Why?

Pentecost speaks of the birth of Israel as a nation, as well as the birth of the congregation of believers in Jesus through the Holy Spirit.  The two loaves speak of Israel and the congregation of believers in the Messiah.  Even though both Israel and the congregation of believers in Jesus are chosen by God and are Holy to Him, sin is still found in Israel and sin still exists in the congregation of believers.

There are two wave loaves and the number two in the Bible is the number of witness and testimony. For example, two witnesses in the Bible establishes a truth (Matt. 18:19-20; Deut. 19:15; John 5:30-33,36-37; Luke 24:44; 1 John 5:8; Rev. 12:11; 11:3).  The Ten Commandments were written on two stones (Ex. 31:18).  Also, the Ten Commandments are fulfilled by obeying two commandments (Matt. 22:34-40).  Jesus and His congregation of believers testify of the love, grace, and plan of God for the whole world.

The meal offering was to be an offering burned by fire upon the altar.  A work of the Holy Spirit is an immersion (baptism) of fire (Luke 3:16). Fire is what God uses to burn sin out of the lives of a believer in Jesus (1 Cor. 3:13-15; 1 Pet. 1:7). The followers of Jesus are supposed to live a righteous life before God (Eph. 4:17-32; 5:1-13; Col. 3:1-13; Rom 8:1-4).

TWO TENTHS EPHOD OF FINE FLOUR (Lev. 23:17)

The grinding and crushing of wheat produces fine flour,  The fine flour speaks of the refining process that our faith goes through as we are conformed to the image of Jesus and enter into His trials, testings, temptations, and sufferings (Zech. 13:9; Rom 5:3-5; 8:29,35-39; 2 Cor. 1:3-11; 1 Pet. 1:7; 4:12-19; Rev. 3:18).

Messianic Fulfillment.  Jesus was the wheat that was planted into the ground (John 12:24; 1 Cor. 15:35-38,42-44).  As wheat is beaten and refined to become fine flour, so the Messiah was beaten and bruised as He became that fine flour (Isa. 28:28; 52:14; 53:1-6; Psa. 81:16; 147:14).

HOLY TO THE LORD FOR THE PRIEST (Lev. 23:20)

Even though the two wave loaves were leavened, the Lord counted them holy unto Himself for the priest.  Both the Jewish believers in Jesus, represented by Israel, and the non-Jewish believers, represented by the congregation, consist of individuals who are leaven.  We still sin before God despite being believers in the Messiah. In spite of this sin, because we are believers in Jesus and seek to serve and love Him with all our hearts, we are considered holy before God (Deut. 7:6-8; 14:2; Luke 168,72-75; Eph. 1:4; 5:27; Col. 1:22-24; 1 Thess. 4:7; Titus 2:12; 1 Pet. 1:15-16).

A STATUTE FOREVER (Lev. 23:21)

The Holy Spirit came to dwell with the believer in Jesus forever (John 14:16-17).  Therefore, the followers of Jesus should have a continual Pentecost experience; one on a daily basis.

THE FEAST OF HARVEST OF FIRST FRUITS (Ex. 23:16; 34:22)

Pentecost is called the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Harvest, or the Feast of the First Fruits. Passover was the barley harvest and Pentecost was the wheat harvest (Ex. 34:22; Ruth 1:22; 2:23; Joel 1:11).

Israel was called a land of barley and wheat (Deut. 8:7-8; 2 Chron. 2:15; Jer. 41:8).  The spring wheat and barley harvest preceded the major harvest in the fall, the Feast of Ingathering (Ex. 23:16; 34:22).  Both the spring and the fall harvests were dependent upon the rains coming at the right time. The fall rains are called the early rain.  The spring rains are called the latter rain.  the early rain is spoken of in (Deut. 11:10-15; 28:12; Lev. 26:4; Joel 2:23,28-29; and Zech. 10:1).  The rain is prophetic of the outpouring of the Holy Spirit upon people's lives individually as they accept Jesus into their lives and allow  the Holy Spirit to teach and instruct them concerning the ways of God.  The early rain and the latter rain also teach us about the pouring out of God's Holy Spirit in a corporate way upon all flesh.  The early rain refers to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit during Jesus' first coming and the latter rain refers to the outpouring of the Holy Spirit during Jesus' second coming.

The harvest speaks of the salvation of people. The spring harvest was the beginning of the harvest of people who would come to receive Jesus as Messiah with the greatest harvest being at the end of this age (Matt. 13:39; 9:37-38; Mark 4:29). The fall harvest or the harvest at the end of this present age is in the seventh month on the biblical religious calendar.  Pentecost is in the third month. From Pentecost, there are four months until the final harvest in the fall (John 4:34-35).  The fall harvest is the fruit harvest.

Messianic Fulfillment.  God said that the coming of Jesus would be like the former and latter rain on the earth (Hosea 6:1-3; Joel 2:23). James ties the coming of the Lord to the early and latter rain (James 5:7).  Jesus' death, burial, and resurrection was in the spring of the year; the outpouring of the Holy Spirit after the resurrection of Jesus was in the spring of the year; and al those who believed were first fruits of the entire harvest and were a part of the spring harvest.  Jesus' second coming wil be in the fall of the year and the greatest number of believers will believe at this time.  Jesus spoke about this harvest at the end of this present age in (Matt. 13:39; 24:13-14); and (Rev. 14:6,15-16).

A HARVEST OF FREEWILL OFFERINGS AND REJOICING (Deut. 16:9-11, 16-17)

As believers in Jesus, when we come before God we are to give of ourselves, including our time, talents, and money, and present them before Him with a joyful heart (Acts 4:32-37; 1 Cor. 1-2; 2 Cor. 8-9).

This concludes the study of the spring festivals. We have seen how the spring festivals are applicable in three dimensions.  They are historic to the nation of Israel; they are fulfilled in Jesus; and they describe how the individual believer is to walk and live his life before God.  We can see that God has a plan for every individual who willingly comes to Him.  So the spring festivals were not only historic, but they were also our type and example (1Cor. 10:1-2,6,11).

To natural Israel, Passover was their freedom from the bondage of Egypt (Ex. 12).  Unleavened Bread was the separation from the land of Egypt into the immersion (baptism) into the Red Sea and the Cloud in the wilderness (1 Cor. 10:1-2). Finally, God led the people to Mount Sinai where they experienced Pentecost and God revealed Himself to the people in a deeper and greater way than He ever did previously.

Messianic Fulfillment.  The spring festivals were fulfilled by Jesus.  Jesus, who was our Passover Lamb, died on the day of Passover.  He was without sin and is the Bread of Life.  Jesus was in the sepulcher on the day of Unleavened Bread and He was the kernel of wheat that was buried in the earth.  Jesus arose as First Fruits of the barley harvest, He himself being the first of those to rise from the dead and receive a resurrected body. Finally, the Holy Spirit was poured out upon all flesh during the Feast of Pentecost to gather al believers in the Messiah to be God's spring harvest in the earth.  As these four feasts describe in detail the significant events during the first coming of Messiah when He came as the suffering Messiah, Messiah ben Joseph, to redeem both man and the earth back to God following the fall of man in the Garden of Eden, we will find that the fall festivals give us tremendous insight and understanding concerning the events of Jesus' second coming.  Then He will return as the King of Kings and Lord of Lords and come back to earth as the kingly Messiah, Messiah ben David, to rule and reign on earth during the Messianic age or the Millennium.

Spiritual Application.  Every time a person receives Jesus the Messiah as his own Saviour, he spiritually experiences Passover.  He is to flee Egypt (the world's evil system and ways) and trust in the Messiah, the Lamb of God, and allow Jesus to be the doorpost of his heart.  As believers,  we are then to seek to live holy lives before God and experience Unleavened Bread.  Just as Jesus arose from the dead, we are to consider our former ways dead to us and experience the newness of life in the Messiah.  Once we do this, we can be immersed (baptized) in the Holy Spirit and have the power of God (the anointing) in our lives. At that time, God will begin to take us on a spiritual journey through the wilderness of life.

In the process of experiencing life's bitter disappointments and struggles, if we keep our eyes upon God, He will take us from Passover to Pentecost where He will reveal His ways and His Word, the Bible in a deeper and progressive way. By keeping our eyes on the Messiah through life's struggles, God will not only reveal His Word, the Bible, to us in a greater way, but He also will refine our faith like fine flour just as was done to the wheat. Meanwhile, if we put our entire trust in Jesus through our spiritual journey in the wilderness of life as God refines our faith and reveals Himself to us in a greater way, our spiritual journey will not end in the wilderness of life.  Instead, God will take us forward to spiritually experience the fall festivals and our spiritual promised land.  It is when we spiritually experience the fall festivals, especially the Feast of Tabernacles, and enter into our spiritual promised land that God will anoint our lives for Him in an awesome way as we live and serve Him. We will then experience the greatest joy in our entire lives.  Joy unspeakable!  This is what the Feast of Tabernacles is all about.  It is called "the season of our joy" and this joy is what we have to look forward to as we learn about the fall festivals.