Counting

It is always a wonderful gift when I find Jesus hidden in the Sabbath reading portions, as is the case for this week. Sometimes it requires a little digging to reveal Him. It is a blessing to know that Jewish people all over the world are studying these same scriptures assigned for this Sabbath, and may make the same discovery of their Messiah in them, and hopefully some Christians are reading them also. This particular time period of the year is especially revealing of Christ, as we will hopefully see. At this time, we are about half way between Passover/the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and the next feast, which we call Pentecost, which is next month. It is on Pentecost that the Holy spirit fell with fire and power upon those believers in Jesus waiting in the Upper Room in Jerusalem (Acts 2). The LORD describes this waiting period between the feasts in a special way: "And you shall count for yourselves from the day after the sabbath...seven sabbaths (49 days) shall be completed. Count fifty days to the day after the seventh sabbath; then you shall offer a new grain offering (2 loaves of wheat flour with leaven) to the LORD...they are the first fruits to the LORD." (Lev. 23:15-17). This feast that takes place fifty days after Unleavened Bread, which we call Pentecost, the Hebrews called The Feast of Weeks, or Shavuot (Deut. 16:9-12). The timing of this feast is unusual because it is not assigned to a specific date on the calendar, like other feasts. This Feast of Shavuot must be counted down by fifty days. This period of counting the fifty days is called "The Counting (sapar- scribe, tell, speak, count, number, shew forth, commune, rehearse, tally or record, take account of) of the Omer (measurement/sheaf)". This is how the Jewish people who study the Torah consider the counting of those fifty days until Shavuot, or Pentecost, which also means "50". They are to make an effort in mastering 49 levels of Torah called "The 49 Gates of Understanding". They search the scriptures each day for an aspect of God to meditate upon. Each of these 49 levels of Torah or "gates of understanding" become a purifying or perfecting of oneself in preparation for the coming feast, Shavuot. At the conclusion of the 49 days/levels/gates, one is left "ailing" for The 50th Gate of Understanding. This 50th Gate, however, is not achieved by man's effort in study, as is the case for the previous 49 Gates. I think this is why God made us count the days as seven sabbaths plus one day. That one additional day is different from the previous 49. The 50th Gate can only be received as "a gift from Above". The number "50" is represented by the Hebrew letter nun. The meaning of this Hebrew letter, nun, reveals Jesus in this 50th Gate of Understanding: "fish (Mt. 4:18-19, Mt. 14:13-21, Lk. 5:4-9, Jn. 21:3-7), seed/sprouting seed (Gen. 3:15, Mt. 13, Jn. 12:23-24), offspring/son (Jn. 3:16-17), heir to the throne (Rom. 8:16-17, Rev. 3:21), faithfulness (Rev. 19:11)". With God's emphasis on the number 50 in connection to Shavuot/the Feast of Weeks/Pentecost, the meaning of the Hebrew letter, nun, and the understanding that the 50th Gate of Understanding cannot be achieved by man's efforts, connects this with the Messiah. Like the 50th Gate of Understanding, the New Testament repeatedly refers to Jesus/Grace and the Holy Spirit as gifts from God. James wrote something that a Jewish person might immediately link to the 50th Gate of Understanding: "Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights (make manifest, luminous, the power of understanding spiritual truth), with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of first fruits of His creatures." (James 1:17-18). Jesus said, "If you knew the gift of God, and who it is who says to you, "Give Me a drink", you would have asked Him, and He would have given you living water." (Jn. 4:10). Of the Holy Spirit, spoken by Peter on Pentecost: "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 2:38). The fact that salvation is a gift, and not by the works of men: "For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest any one should boast." (Eph. 2:8). Here are additional scriptures that emphasize Jesus/Grace and the Holy Spirit as gifts from God: Rom. 5:15-18, Rom. 6:23, Acts 8:20, 10:45, 11:17, Heb. 6:4, 1 Pet. 4:10). Here are New Testament mentions that state, similarly to The 50th Gate of Understanding, the gifts are from "on high", or above: "But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure (see "Omer" above) of Christ's gift. Therefore He says: "When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men." (Eph. 4:7-8). In Jn. 3:3, when Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." The phrase, "born again", can also be translated as "born from above" or "born from a higher place". When Peter suddenly understood that Jesus was the Messiah, the Christ, Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon BarJonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven." (Mt. 16:17). "Heaven" used here can also mean "the upper regions" or "heights above". Peter's revelation, which would be the revelation for the whole Church as well (v. 18), could not come from men's endeavors, but as a gift of understanding from Above. This week's Sabbath reading that includes Lev. 23 is titled, Emor, which means "Say!". For me, it is also another example of the continuity and confirmation to be found within the Word of God that can be sought out and found by all who are willing to look, both Jews and Gentiles. As we count the days to Pentecost, may we understand in a deeper way the revelation gift from God above, His Son, Who gave us salvation, grace, and the Holy Spirit, and made us joint-heirs with Him. Our Father has revealed the 50th Gate of Understanding to us from Above. If you would like to know the Son and Heir to the Throne of God, you can pray: "Heavenly Father, by Your Son, Jesus, You have given me the free gift of grace and salvation, the gift of eternal life. I believe that Jesus, Your only begotten Son, died for my sins, and was raised from the dead. I believe that He has secured an inheritance for me in earth and in heaven. I believe that Jesus sent the gift of the Holy Spirit in fire and power to fill me and lead me in my walk with Him. I receive this gift, not by my own efforts, but by Your revelation from Above, in Jesus' name. AMEN."