Let’s catch ourselves up to speed.
Passover - Nissan 14
Feast of Unleavened Bread - Nissan 15
Feast of First Fruits
Let’s go to Leviticus 23:10-14 and see what Scripture tells us there before we see how Jesus fulfills this feast, too.
“Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you come into the land that I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest, 11 and he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, so that you may be accepted. On the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.12 And on the day when you wave the sheaf, you shall offer a male lamb a year old without blemish as a burnt offering to the Lord. 13 And the grain offering with it shall be two tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil, a food offering to the Lord with a pleasing aroma, and the drink offering with it shall be of wine, a fourth of a hin 14 And you shall eat neither bread nor grain parched or fresh until this same day, until you have brought the offering of your God: it is a statute forever throughout your generations in all your dwellings. “
First, let me say that there is more in here than I can grasp. The exact measurements and instructions are definitely included by divine design but I am focused on the other aspects of this part of the Passover/Unleavened Bread week of celebration. Specifically, the day after the Sabbath following Passover. That would be on our Sunday.
We see that God tells them - when you come into the land…and reap a harvest. That tells us that this feast was not celebrated while God’s people were wandering in the wilderness. This was only after they entered the Promised Land. It was so they could celebrate the first of the barley harvest …and dedicate the rest of it by faith to the Lord.
Interesting to note - barley, the first grain of the season to be harvested, was considered the food of the poor. Remember that. And Jews were not to touch the barley until the first sheaf (representing the whole harvest) had been present to and approved by the priest. Remember that, too.
Are you already thinking about what happened the first day (Sunday) after the Sabbath after Passover?
Jesus rose from the dead! Yes hallelujah and hooray!
Now on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw that the stone had already been taken away from the tomb (John 20:1) He is not here for He has risen, just as He said (Matthew 28:6)
The lamb that was slain, the kernel of wheat that died and was buried in the ground…AROSE FROM THE DEAD! He is alive! And He arose on the day that the Feast of the First Fruits was celebrated because But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep I Corinthians 15:20
He is the first fruit of the divine harvest of God, the first to be alive after being dead…and the promise of a greater harvest to come.
Does that not make you want to scream hallelujah? WOW! If that doesn’t light your fire, then, my sweet sister, you got wet wood!
This resurrection took place on the first day of the week - and that is why we as New Testament believers gather to worship on Sunday —to celebrate our risen Savior, the FIRST FRUITS of God’s harvest!
Couple of intriguing things to note….remember what I said about barley being the food for the poor? Check out Matthew 5:3… Blessed are the poor in spirit for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven. And the verse from the last post John 6: 35 Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger,
How about that? Feast of first fruits…barley…the food of the poor…we must be poor spiritually and eat the living bread in order to have the Kingdom of Heaven. WOW!
And that thing about not touching the grain until it had been presented to and approved by the Father….check out John 20:17 - Jesus said to her (Mary) “Stop clinging to Me for I have not yet ascended to the Father but go to My brothers and say to them, I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God”
Whaaaaaaaat?
As Mary discovers Jesus outside the empty tomb, she reaches to embrace Him but Jesus stops her. That always struck me as cold or something. I mean, it seemed perfectly normal to me for her to want to hug Him in delight! So why did Jesus say she couldn’t?
Well, now that we know about the Feast of the First Fruits, we understand! The people could not touch the barley until it had been presented to and approved by the priests - since Jesus perfectly fulfills all requirements of the Law, He could not be touched by the people until He had ascended to the Father and received His approval! This happened while Mary ran to tell the disciples what she had seen and a few hours later, the rest of John 20 tells us that Jesus not only appeared to the Father but He invited them to touch Him and see that He was real!
Wow! Just WOW!
OK, last Spring Feast. Feast of Weeks or Pentecost. 50 days after the Feast of First Fruits.
But it’s gonna have to wait til tomorrow. All this writing has worn out my computer and it needs to rest.
See you next time :)