Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Prayer Meeting Lesson Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/pm/pm20010131.htm

LEVITICUS: GOD'S CALL FOR A SEPARATED WITNESS
Part II: The Path Of Walking In Fellowship With God (Leviticus 11-27)
M. God's Prophetic Assemblies Of Christ's Redemption
4. The Feast Of Pentecost: Foretelling The Church Era
(Leviticus 23:15-22)
  1. Introduction
    1. The Apostle Paul declared the Church had been a mystery, something hidden from clear understanding to the Hebrew believers for hundreds of years before being fully revealed by God through Paul, Eph. 3:3-7.
    2. A critic might react to Paul's calling the Church a mystery, saying he was merely giving a questionable excuse for the Church's sudden rise, thus challenging the validity of the Christian faith itself.
    3. However, though hidden in a mystery form, the mystery was nevertheless clearly typified centuries before the Church existed, and that through the Feast of Pentecost in Leviticus 23. We view that feast to see (1) the credibility of the Church as predicted in the Old Testament, and (2) to view its role as follows:
  2. The Feast Of Pentecost: Foretelling The Church Era, Leviticus 23:15-22.
    1. The Feast of Pentecost was connected to the feasts of Unleavened Bread and Firstfruits by its schedule: Pentecost means "fifty days" (in the Greek LXX), and it was kept fifty days after the Sabbath that began the Feast of Unleavened Bread, or 7 weeks from the first day of the week on which the Feast of Firstfruits was observed, Leviticus 23:15-16a, Ryrie Study Bible, KJV, ftn. to Lev. 23:15-23.
    2. As such, the Feast of Pentecost typified the birth the Church and exposed its ministry as follows:
      1. On exactly the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit came on the gathered followers of Christ, Acts 2:1-4.
      2. This event marked the birth of the Church:
        1. In Matthew 16:18, Christ predicted the Church would be a future organism yet to be formed.
        2. Well, the first time the Church is called the "Church" is in Acts 2:47 soon after the Holy Spirit's arrival had formed the gathered believers into a unified, powerful, ministering body, Acts 2:1-46.
        3. Also, the Church is identified as a group of believers, Jew and Gentile, who have each one been spiritually baptized by the Holy Spirit into the body called the Church, 1 Corinthians 12:12-13.
        4. Thus, the Church began on the Day of Pentecost with the Holy Spirit's spiritually baptizing arrival.
    3. Besides predicting the Church's origin, Pentecost revealed the Church's ministry and purpose as follows:
      1. The existence of two wave loaves baked with leaven typified the Church's construction, 23:16b-17:
        1. At Pentecost, two loaves were offered to the Lord, picturing the union of Jews and Gentiles into a single body, the Church, Leviticus 23:16b-17a; Ephesians 2:11-15 with 1 Corinthians 12:13.
        2. The loaves were baked with leaven, revealing sin in those in Christ who have sin natures in their experience while living in unglorified bodies upon earth, 23:17b; 1 Jn. 1:8, 10 with Eph. 1:3-6.
        3. Yet, these leavened loaves were seen as a firstfruits, showing positional perfection in Christ as believers will be raptured into the likeness of Himself, their Firstfruits, 23:17c; 1 Cor. 15:20-23.
      2. All of the regular sacrifices were performed on Pentecost, picturing the Christian's full entrance into the cleansing and equipping of salvation offered in Christ, Lev. 23:18-20: the burnt (v. 18), meal (v. 18), drink (v. 18), sin (v. 19) and peace (v. 19) offerings were all offered at that time!
      3. The Day of Pentecost was a sabbatical rest even though it came on the first day of the week, Sunday, Lev. 23:21 with 23:15-16. Thus, though the Christian is not be under the Old Testament sabbatical rule (Col. 2:16-17), he is yet to live a faith-rest life (Hebrews 4:1-10): he is to cease living by his own works and power, and do God's agenda in God's power for God's glory!
      4. Pentecost came at harvest, and its institution included a focus on leaving grain for the needy to glean, Lev. 23:22. This pictures the Church's role of taking the Gospel to the needy world, Mtt. 28:19-20.
Lesson: (1) Christianity is valid since the CHURCH was prophetically typified through the ancient Feast of Pentecost. (2) As such, the Church was to be (a) the body of ALL believers, whether they be Jew or Gentile, (b) who are POSITIONALLY perfected in Him (c) though EXPERIENTIALLY still afflicted with sin natures, (d) who will yet share in the perfection of Christ when they are glorified at the rapture of the Church! (e) Until the rapture occurs, Christians are to live a faith-rest life, doing God's will in God's power for God's glory! (f) Their ministry is to focus on discipling the nations!