Shavuot - Jesus' Festival of Weeks
Shavuot/Weeks/Pentecost
Our journey through the Jewishness of Jesus ends with Shavuot, the Festival of Weeks. Shavuot occurs seven weeks (seven sevens, or a week of weeks) and one day after the Day of Firstfruits (Easter). Because Shavuot is 50 days after Firstfruits, it is also called Pentecost, from the Greek work "pentaconta" meaning 50.
Shavuot in the Old Testament
Shavuot is one of the three pilgrimage festivals in the Old Testament, where Israelite men were expected to journey to Jerusalem to worship. Unlike the other pilgrimage festivals of Tabernacles and Passover/Unleavened Bread which last 7 days, Shavuot is only a one-day event (ironically, since it's called the Festival of Weeks!).
Like the other pilgrimage festivals, Shavuot has both an agricultural component, and a connection to the Exodus story. The timing of this holiday corresponds to the collection of the first wheat crop, and thus an opportunity to give thanks to God that the first full crop has been collected. In the Exodus story, 49 days after Passover is approximately the time when the people arrive at Mt. Sinai and receive the law and the 10 Commandments.
Shavuot in the New Testament
Because of its brevity and timing, Shavuot was the least well-attended of the three major festivals. Nevertheless, huge crowds of Jews would have flooded the city from all over the world. In Acts 2, we see these crowds, representing many languages.
In Acts, the Holy Spirit descends upon the disciples on Shavuot. After Jesus ascended into heaven, he sent the disciples back to the city; then, on the same day that Israel received the law, the church received the Spirit. This is traditionally called "the birthday of the church."
The Dust of the Rabbi - Tying It Together
In both the Old and New Testaments, Shavuot is a day where God miraculously "comes down" to us and equips us to respond to his great salvation (of the Exodus/the Cross) by beginning a new way of life with him. Note that the salvation precedes our response, and that even our response is a gift of God.
Most critical in this holiday is the shift from the Old to the New. In the Old Covenant, God journeyed with us, but remained external, living in a tabernacle in our company. In the New Covenant, God the Holy Spirit tabernacles in us.
Extras:
We finished our "Prayer Book of the Rabbi" series last week; however, I wanted to include one final resource on prayer and the Psalms, Jesus's prayer book. This is a video with Bono (lead singer for U2) and Eugene Peterson (bible scholar, translator of The Message) and their reflections on the book of Psalms. This is well worth your time - I hope you'll check it out.