Wednesday, June 1, 2022
Scripture: Deuteronomy 16.9-10
You shall count seven weeks; begin to count the seven weeks from the time the sickle is first put to the standing grain. Then you shall keep the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God, contributing a free will offering in proportion to the blessing that you have received from the Lord your God.
Devotion:
This Sunday is Pentecost in the Christian tradition (don’t forget to wear red!), and on that day we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit which came to the early church in fire and strange languages. We often call this “the birthday of the church.” And we wear red to signify the power of the Spirit among us.
Did you know that Pentecost actually has its roots in Judaism? The celebration of Pentecost is called, as we see in this Deuteronomy passage, the Festival of Weeks or Shavuot. It is 50 days or 7 weeks following the celebration of Passover, and it is meant to commence the agricultural bounty that begins around this time
of year. In later years, some Jewish traditions began celebrating Shavuot as the day that the Israelites received the Torah from God on the holy mountain, a day when they celebrate God’s law and God’s word in their midst. While it is important to note that these are two different holidays, knowing the Jewish history also helps us to understand in greater depth what we are celebrating this Sunday. The disciples had gone to synagogue to gather in worship for Shavuot, to celebrate the bounty God has given and the gift of the law. In the same way that God gifted the Israelites in the desert with the Law, so God gifted the disciples with the Holy Spirit. In the same way that the Law provides guidance, support, and inspiration, so the Holy Spirit moves within and among us to guide us in the way of God’s truth. Pentecost is a gift and a challenge, a time to give thanks for what we have received and to offer a bit of ourselves to God’s work.
Join us on Sunday, June 5 to celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit and the birthday of the church. Don’t forget to wear red and join us for breakfast at 8:30am in Fellowship Hall. We will, of course, be singing the old favorite, “Spirit,” but we’ll also be singing this one that you may or may not know: Come, Oh Spirit, Dwell Among Us. Watch this YouTube video to get used to it before Sunday!
You shall count seven weeks; begin to count the seven weeks from the time the sickle is first put to the standing grain. Then you shall keep the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God, contributing a free will offering in proportion to the blessing that you have received from the Lord your God.
Devotion:
This Sunday is Pentecost in the Christian tradition (don’t forget to wear red!), and on that day we celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit which came to the early church in fire and strange languages. We often call this “the birthday of the church.” And we wear red to signify the power of the Spirit among us.
Did you know that Pentecost actually has its roots in Judaism? The celebration of Pentecost is called, as we see in this Deuteronomy passage, the Festival of Weeks or Shavuot. It is 50 days or 7 weeks following the celebration of Passover, and it is meant to commence the agricultural bounty that begins around this time
of year. In later years, some Jewish traditions began celebrating Shavuot as the day that the Israelites received the Torah from God on the holy mountain, a day when they celebrate God’s law and God’s word in their midst. While it is important to note that these are two different holidays, knowing the Jewish history also helps us to understand in greater depth what we are celebrating this Sunday. The disciples had gone to synagogue to gather in worship for Shavuot, to celebrate the bounty God has given and the gift of the law. In the same way that God gifted the Israelites in the desert with the Law, so God gifted the disciples with the Holy Spirit. In the same way that the Law provides guidance, support, and inspiration, so the Holy Spirit moves within and among us to guide us in the way of God’s truth. Pentecost is a gift and a challenge, a time to give thanks for what we have received and to offer a bit of ourselves to God’s work.
Join us on Sunday, June 5 to celebrate the gift of the Holy Spirit and the birthday of the church. Don’t forget to wear red and join us for breakfast at 8:30am in Fellowship Hall. We will, of course, be singing the old favorite, “Spirit,” but we’ll also be singing this one that you may or may not know: Come, Oh Spirit, Dwell Among Us. Watch this YouTube video to get used to it before Sunday!