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| > Sermon Archive > Sermons by Author > Dr. Wes Bredenhof > Take time to celebrate and give thanks for God’s generous Gift | Previous Next Print |
| Order Of Worship (Liturgy) Hymn 48 Hymn 82:3,4 (after the Law of God) Psalm 67 Hymn 49 Psalm 147:1,4 Scripture reading: Acts 2:1-13 Text: Leviticus 23:15-22 |
Beloved congregation of Christ,
Everyone loves long weekends and holidays. Now imagine for a moment if you lived in a country where there were absolutely no holidays. You have to imagine it because no such country exists. But let’s pretend that there was such a place and you lived there. One day would just endlessly roll into another. It would be a grey and dull existence – nothing to look forward to, nothing to celebrate, nothing to give thanks for. Ever.
The idea of special times in the calendar seems to be hardwired into our humanity. We can’t imagine life without special days. This has to do with how God created the universe. At the beginning, God created everything within the span of six days. But the seventh day was to be a sacred day, a day set apart. God rested from his work of creation and that was meant to set a pattern for humanity. Sacred times have been in place right from the start.
As the weekly Lord’s Day, today is one of those sacred times. Today we also commemorate the pouring out of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. Of course, the Bible describes the day of Pentecost in Acts 2. From that chapter, you might think that Pentecost is a uniquely Christian event. However, as we’re going to see this morning, it was originally a Jewish sacred time, a feast in the Jewish calendar, for about 1500 years before Christ.
This morning we’re focussing our attention on the Feast of Weeks, what would later be known as Pentecost. The message of our passage for us today is this: Take time to celebrate and give thanks for God’s generous Gift.
We’ll consider:
- The Old Testament shadows of this Gift
- The New Testament fulfillment of this Gift
The book of Leviticus is about the problem of how sinful people can dwell in the presence of the holy God. At the beginning of the book, we discover how the burnt offering allowed people to approach the holy God at the tabernacle. It could do this because it provided atonement as it pointed ahead to Jesus Christ and his once-for-all sacrifice.
Where we are right now in the book of Leviticus is about how God’s people can continue to enjoy fellowship with him in his presence. Part of this involves sacred times or feasts. Leviticus 23 describes the weekly Sabbath first. Israelites were to rest and worship on the seventh day. But then were also annual feasts. One of these was the Passover, a feast which celebrated God’s liberation of Israel from the bonds of slavery in Egypt. Another was the Feast of Firstfruits. The first of the grain harvest in that part of the world was barley. When the first barley came in, the Israelites were to offer up some of it to God in thanksgiving. Give him the firstfruits.
That led directly into the Feast of Weeks we’re focussing on in verses 15 to 22. Seven weeks, fifty days after the Feast of Firstfruits, there would be another harvest celebration, a much bigger one. Incidentally, it’s called Pentecost because that’s the name the Greek translation of the Old Testament gave it. It was called Pentecost in the Septuagint because of the fifty days. ‘Pentecoste’ means the 50th day in Greek.
If we skip ahead to verse 21, we find that this was to be a holy day of rest. The day before would have been a Sabbath, then the Israelites would celebrate Pentecost the next day. It was like an Israelite long weekend. All Israelite males were expected to come to the tabernacle (or later on the temple) for a special service. They weren’t supposed to do any ordinary work. Works of necessity were allowed, but this was a day to set aside your normal daily labours and focus on God.
Various communal offerings would have been offered on behalf of the Israelite community. There were animal sacrifices to atone for sin, to bring worship and praise, and to rejoice in covenant fellowship with God. But the heart of Pentecost in the Old Testament was the offering of grain to the LORD.
Each Israelite worshipper was supposed to bring two loaves of bread on behalf of his family. The bread was baked from the grain of the harvest just gathered in. It was to be baked with yeast or leaven. This was the one and only feast where Israelites would bring leavened bread. Obviously there’s something unique and special about this sacred time. Israelites would ordinarily eat leavened bread in their daily life and certainly if there was a special occasion of joyful celebration like a wedding, they wouldn’t think of eating unleavened bread. Leavened bread was therefore appropriate for a time of celebrating God’s bounty in the harvest.
The two loaves of bread would be used with the two lambs as a wave offering. A wave offering was a kind of symbolic offering up of something to God, dedicating something to him. But instead of burning this offering on the fire, the priests would wave it in the air several times back and forth. That was done because the intention of the wave offering was that it would be used for food by God’s servants, the priests. So the loaves of bread were not burned on the altar, but offered up to God for use by the priests.
So the Feast of Weeks was originally all about celebrating and giving thanks for God’s generosity in giving a harvest to his people. Verse 22 adds a reminder that God’s generosity was to spill over into the lives of his people. God generously provided for them and they were to generously provide for others, especially the vulnerable in their society – the poor and the sojourner. Sojourners were transient people in the Israelite community, wanderers who typically had slender means. But God said that such people were to be provided for in the harvest too. Israelites weren’t to be overly precise in harvesting their land. If you were striving for maximum profits as a farmer, you would reap every little bit of grain on your field. When harvesting, you would leave nothing behind. But God said, “Don’t be so stingy. Think about people like the poor and the sojourner, leave something behind for them. Think about the disadvantaged and take care of them.”
We see an example of how that was supposed to work in the book of Ruth. Boaz was a wealthy farmer. But he allowed poor widows like Ruth to glean in his fields. That’s why Scripture calls him a “worthy” man. He was gracious and generous with others like God had been with him.
Now when we try to take God’s Word from Leviticus 23 into our lives today, we could be tempted to take a simplistic approach. God’s people were to take time to celebrate and give thanks for the harvest, so we too should have an annual day of thanksgiving as Christians. Certainly there’s a lot to commend such a thought. It is good to give thanks when we receive God’s good gifts. But we should go deeper. Remember what our Belgic Confession says in article 25. The Old Testament gives us shadows and then it goes on: “yet their truth and substance remain for us in Jesus Christ, in whom they have been fulfilled.” You see, if we were just to look at this passage as a reminder to give thanks for the harvest, we haven’t really gone much beyond what a Jewish person today would get it from it. But we believe that the whole entire Bible, including Leviticus, speaks to us of Christ. It speaks to us of the Gospel and so we have to dig a little deeper and think a little more.
Acts 2 is the only place in the New Testament where we read about the Feast of Weeks, the Feast of Pentecost. Acts 2:1 tells us the believers were gathered in a certain place in Jerusalem. Suddenly the Holy Spirit was poured out on all who were gathered there. They began speaking in tongues. Jews were gathered from all over the Roman Empire in Jerusalem for the Feast. They heard believers telling the “mighty works of God” in their own languages. They heard the gospel of Jesus Christ. Later in the chapter we read that those who believed were baptized “and there were added that day about three thousand souls.” The early Christian church grew explosively from about 120 people to about 3000. God did this by the power of his Holy Spirit.
Let’s think about this in terms of Leviticus 23. We noted earlier the close connection between the Feast of Firstfruits and the Feast of Pentecost. Is there any firstfruits in view in Acts 2? Yes, there is. In 1 Corinthians 15, Christ is said to be the firstfruits. When Christ was raised from the dead, he was like the first heads of the barley harvest in Old Testament times. He was raised from death to life and that was an indication that far more was coming. A bigger harvest was down the road. Moreover, and this is really important: Christ was actually raised from the dead on the Feast of Firstfruits. That Easter Sunday was the day that year.
Then 50 days later, on the Feast of Pentecost, the full harvest appeared. The Holy Spirit was poured out and he started reaping the fields, so to speak. Three thousand people were suddenly added to the church. Can you imagine? Can you imagine if God suddenly added 3000 people to our church? What would be our reaction?
Hopefully it would be similar to how the early New Testament Christians reacted. Acts 2:43 says that “awe came upon every soul.” That would be awe for God. Acts 2:45 speaks of the Christians selling their possessions and giving generously to those who were in need. Then it says they were receiving their food with “glad and generous hearts, praising God…” Then to top it all off, we’re told the church continued to grow. These were people rejoicing and celebrating, giving thanks, and being generous. All of that lines up with what Leviticus 23 said about the Feast of Weeks. It points us to how we should take this into our lives today.
The gift in the Old Testament Pentecost was God’s generous harvest. The gift in the New Testament Pentecost is also something God has given. First of all, he’s given us his Son, with his firstfruits victory over sin and death. And before Jesus ascended into heaven, he promised to be with us always to the end of the age. He would be present in the person of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit was poured out on the church in Acts 2 – that language of “pouring out” is meant to convey the idea of abundance. The Holy Spirit had been present before Pentecost. No one in the Old Testament or New Testament has ever been able to believe in God apart from the work of the Holy Spirit. He has always had a crucial role in regenerating sinners, in causing them to be born again so they can believe. But at Pentecost, Christ sent him to his people in a fresh and powerful way, so his people could be equipped to begin the harvest of the nations. God’s generous gift which we can celebrate and give thanks for is the gospel of his Son, ministered through the power of the Holy Spirit, for the salvation harvest of sinners from every tribe, people, tongue, and nation.
Isn’t it amazing that from that tiny number of believers in Jerusalem, the church has grown to what it is today? 120 people gathered in a room and now there are billions of people who claim to be Christians. Approximately 30% of the world’s population says they’re Christian. Even if only 5% of that number are actual Bible-believing, gospel-believing Christians, that’s still 120 million people. Let’s not forget that we’re among them. Somehow God in his generosity brought the gospel to us. For some of us, he first brought the gospel to our forefathers in Europe. For others, it came to us here in Australia. But by God’s grace it came one way or another. Loved ones, this isn’t something to take for granted. In his providence and in his generosity, God worked through the Holy Spirit and the preaching of the gospel to bring us into his church. We’ve been a part of the harvest.
We can and we should celebrate that, also today on this Pentecost Sunday. We should give thanks to God for the great gift of his Son working through his Spirit to include us in his great harvest. Let this Pentecost today be a time when we lift up our hearts in praise and gratitude to God. The Israelites could give thanks for a harvest of wheat and barley. In the gospel, we have something far greater for which to give thanks to God.
There’s one more thing we need to consider here. Remember the law in Leviticus 23:22 about leaving gleanings and the edges of the fields for the poor and sojourner? Now notice how that comes back in Pentecost in Acts 2. The believers are in a city, not in a field. But they take the principle of Leviticus 23:22 and put it into practice in their own way. In theology we would say they contextualize the principle. The thrust of the principle is to reflect God and his generosity. Since he’s lavished you with his generous Gift, you should also go and reflect him with your gracious generosity to other people.
The believers in Acts 2 did that by taking care of each other. They made sure no one in their church was in need. That’s something we’re called to do as well. We show our thanks for God’s generous gift of the gospel of his Son by being what’s called a diaconal congregation. Let me explain what I mean by that. We have deacons. We have these ordained men whose calling is to manage the ministry of mercy – showing love in practical ways to those in need. But God’s intention isn’t that the deacons do this ministry of mercy all by themselves. They’re to stimulate the congregation to be involved in it so that even if we’re not ordained deacons, we’re all still acting in diaconal ways. We look out for one another’s needs. That might be financial, but it’s not restricted to that. Sometimes the greatest need is relationships. There are people in our church who feel lonely at times. God’s generous gift is meant to stimulate us to think about such people and not only think about them, but do something. Reach out to them with kindness and compassion. If you can, show hospitality, open your home. I said “If you can,” because I recognize that not everybody might be in a position to do this – you might not be at a point in your life where you’re able to open your home. That’s understandable. But if you are, then this applies. And if you don’t know who these lonely people might be, if you need someone to direct you to them, ask your elder or your deacon. They know who those people are in our congregation. To quote the Form for the Ordination of Elders and Deacons – it puts it really well: “Also today the Lord calls on us to show hospitality, generosity, and mercy, so that the weak and needy may share abundantly in the joy of God’s people. No one in the congregation of Christ may live uncomforted under the pressure of sickness, loneliness, and poverty.”
Another important way we celebrate and give thanks for God’s generous Gift is by telling others about it. Encouraged by the gift of God’s Son and empowered by his Holy Spirit, the early Christians in the book of Acts told the gospel to whomever they could. This was also an act of generosity in line with Leviticus 23:22. God had blessed them with a Gift, and that Gift was meant to be shared with others far and wide. Just like Israelite farmers weren’t supposed to keep the grain all to themselves, Christians today aren’t supposed to keep the bread of life all to themselves. Because we’re grateful for what we’ve received by God’s grace, we’re supposed to share it with others, let it overflow into the lives of fellow sinners who need it so desperately.
So many people around us are starving spiritually. They’re like the poor and the sojourner in the Old Testament. The poor you will always have with you, said Jesus, and that can be extended to include the spiritually poor. The lost are always there. Many of us know them. We have friends and family members who don’t believe in Christ. There are people we work with, people we go to school with, neighbours. They need the food we have. They need the bread of life found in the gospel of Jesus Christ.
I remember a blood donation campaign from some years ago in Canada. The line in the commercials was this: “Blood: it’s in you to give.” Brilliant. Similarly, the gospel has been given to us to give. Christ has been given to us to give. The good news of what he has done is not meant to be hoarded away, but shared. It gives life and people need it.
Perhaps you find this challenging. Remember God’s generous gift of his Holy Spirit. He was poured out to empower us to be able to be generous and share the gospel with others. In Matthew 10, Jesus told us not to be anxious when we’re in a position to give a gospel witness to someone. He said, “Do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given you in that hour. For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.” So loved ones, trust the Holy Spirit and his almighty power. He will give you the words and the strength to speak them. He will.
Also remember to make this a matter of prayer. Sometimes we don’t share the gospel with people because we haven’t been praying for opportunities to do so. When you pray for God to open doors for you, he often does. One strategy might be to pray for two unbelievers for two minutes every day. That’s not a biblical requirement, but it can be helpful to remind ourselves that the spiritually poor are out there and we have the bread of life they need. When we pray for them, we grow in our love for them and when our hearts are soft for them like that, we can be used by God to share the gifts he’s lavished on us.
Loved ones, the Feast of Pentecost is ultimately a gospel feast. It was a time to remember with joy God’s grace in the harvest. A time also to remember that what God is like in his grace and generosity is meant to encourage us to be godly, to be like God. The New Testament takes these themes and sharpens them for us as they’re fulfilled in Christ and what God did through him. Today, let’s take time to celebrate and give thanks that God is so rich and generous towards us – then let that spill over as we show God’s generosity to whomever we can in word and deed. AMEN.
PRAYER
Heavenly Father,
Thank you for the firstfruits that we have in Jesus Christ. We praise you for the empty tomb and the victory over sin and death that it represents. Thank you for the rich gift of your Holy Spirit poured out on the church. We worship you for how he has taken your rich gospel gifts and proclaimed and applied them far and wide. We’re so glad and grateful that in your grace the joyous sound of the gospel came to us too. Father, thank you for Pentecost and all it represents in the Old Testament and the New. With your Holy Spirit working in us, let us continue to be joyful and thankful for your gospel gifts. We pray that these gifts would make us generous and gracious with one another, but also towards unbelievers who need the bread of life in Jesus Christ. We pray for the unbelievers in our lives. Father, have mercy on them and send your Spirit to cause them to be born again. Please bring them to faith in Jesus Christ. We pray out of love for them and also from our desire for your Name to be praised by them.
* As a matter of courtesy please advise Dr. Wes Bredenhof, if you plan to use this sermon in a worship service. Thank-you.
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