Now let’s come back to Exodus 19.  Let’s see the things that happened leading up to the giving of the Ten Commandments, and let’s understand something about the Day of Pentecost that a lot of people do not understand.  And yet here it is right here, right in the scriptures for us to see and to know and understand.

Now let’s begin in verse 14, after the people said yes they’ll do that, ok.  “And Moses went down from the mount unto the people, and sanctified the people; and they washed their clothes.”  Now this took place on Friday, the preparation for the weekly Sabbath.  “And he said unto the people, Be ready against the third day…”, which then is Sunday.  Because you have Friday, which is the first day to wash the clothes and be sanctified.  Sabbath to rest, and he says here, “…come not at your wives” (vs. 14-15).  Then Sunday is the third day.

Now let’s notice what happened on that Sunday, which is Pentecost.  And brethren, let’s understand something.  There has never been a Monday Pentecost, really.  That was based on some foolishness by one of the evangelists in trying to justify what he considered was an apostle, for choosing Monday as a day of Pentecost.  There has never been such a thing. Now the Church may have observed Monday as a day of Pentecost by mistake for a long time, but it’s just like anything else, sooner or later God led them to the truth.  And I know for a fact that this problem between the Sunday/Monday difficulty that people have with Pentecost even to this day could have been solved in 1952.  That’s another whole story.  You want to ask me about that sometime when you see me, I’ll tell you.  But it could have been solved and we wouldn’t have had that mistake.  And because we had that mistake we didn’t understand the meaning of Pentecost being that it pictures the harvest of the first resurrection.

Now here’s something also that we didn’t understand because we thought that the resurrection would be on Feast of Trumpets, because we’ll see it a little later on the resurrection and trumpets are blown, that’s true.  But let’s ask the question:  Is that the only time a trumpet is blown?  Yes, you can do a concordance study and you can make a pretty good case on that, but is it true?  And if you do a concordance study then you better look at some words here in Exodus 19.

Let’s read it in verse 16.  “And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet…”  A trumpet.  On which day?  Pentecost.  Wow, I don’t think very many people even understood that, but there it is.  It’s not the tinkling of a symbol.  It is the sound of a trumpet, exceeding loud.  So loud “…that all the people that was in the camp trembled.  And Moses brought forth the people out of the came to meet with God; and they stood at the nether part of the mount.  And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the LORD descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.  And when the voice of the trumpet…”  What’s that word again?  “…When the sound of the trumpet sounded long, and waxed louder and louder…”

Listen, the trumpet is blown on the Feast of Pentecost.  And when God gave the Ten Commandments, before He gave the Ten Commandments He blew the trumpet.  Now let’s that sink in a little bit, because yes, the trumpet.  Now notice, this is not trumpets .  This is the trumpet .  Now we’ll see a little bit of that in the New Testament here a little bit later.  So then you know what happened.  God came down and He spoke the Ten Commandments.

Now let me ask you a question:  Do you have them memorized?  Are they part of your heart and mind?  If someone asks you to say them could you say them right now?  Ok, let’s try it.

“And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage.  Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.  Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate Me; and shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love Me…”  Now stop and think for just a minute right here.  Love is right in the Ten Commandments here.  “…That love Me, and keep My commandments” (Ex. 20:1-6).  So love and commandment keeping go together, don’t they?  Yes, they do.  Now this also tells us that idolatry brings hatred toward God.  That’s why He hates it.

Now, third commandment, “Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold Him guiltless that taketh His name in vain” (vs. 7).  And understand this: the worst way of taking the name of God in vain is not cursing on the golf course.  That’s bad enough.  It is standing in a pulpit or sitting in a seat of  authority or teaching people and saying that God has said, when God didn’t say.

Now when we look a the fourth commandment here, “Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy.  Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor they stranger that is within thy gates: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth…and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the sabbath day, and [made it holy] hallowed it” (vs. 8-11).

Now then every Sunday, Sunday-keepers, when they use the name of the Lord on Sunday and justify what they are doing, they are taking the name of the Lord in vain and they are the nice religious people of this world.  Whether it be Protestants, or whether it be Catholics, or whether it be Orthodox, they are taking the name of God in vain.  And the Catholics go so far in what they do, they remove the second commandment and split the tenth one in two.  But these are the words of God.  Now what did God say in Exodus 19?  “If you will indeed hearken unto My voice and keep My covenant, then you shall be a peculiar people unto Me.”  Now do we get the point?  Yes.

Then the fifth commandment is, “Honor thy father and thy mother: that thy days may be long upon the land which the LORD thy God giveth thee.  Thou shalt not kill [or that is murder].  Thou shalt not commit adultery.  Thou shalt not steal.  Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.  Thou shalt not coven thy neighbour’s house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbour’s wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his ass, nor any ting that is thy neighbour’s” (vs. 12-17).  And if the tenth commandment were kept just carnally in the world, my, wouldn’t that solve a lot of problems?  Ok, so God gave the Ten Commandments on the day of Pentecost.

Now let’s come to Exodus 24 and let’s see then after they heard of the voice of God.  After He laid out every thing for them that they were to do, gave them additional statutes and judgments, and those were recorded in the book of the law, or the covenant book of the law, then Moses had young men sacrifice animals. He sprinkled them with the blood.  He sprinkled the book with the blood.  And all the people said, “All the words that the LORD has said, we will do.”

Now we have the same thing today.  All the things that God has said, or that Christ has said, we have said, “We will do.”  And the problem has been that too many men come along and try and interpret it their own ways.  So the covenant was established.  But the point I want to make is that on Pentecost the Ten Commandments were given and the trumpet sounded.

Now let’s come to Numbers 10 and let’s look here a little bit concerning the commands for trumpets.  And we will see that the trumpet was to be sounded on many, many different occasions.  God told Moses to go ahead and make two silver trumpets.  Whole pieces of silver they were to be.  (Numbers 10:2).  Number one is for the calling of assemblies.  Verse five is when an alarm.  So in case of war, or there’s an emergency they would blow the alarm.  “When ye blow an alarm the second time…” (vs. 6).  Then it tells the instructions what the camp will do.

Now let’s come over here, verse 9.  “And if ye go to war in your land against the enemy that oppresseth you, then ye shall blow an alarm with the trumpets…”  Verse 10, “…in the day of your gladness, and in your solemn days…”  In other words every single holy day the trumpet was blown.  Now we’ll see a little later on, the Feast of Trumpets is a memorial of the blowing of trumpets.  We’ll finish here, “…in the beginnings of your months, ye shall blow with the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your peace offerings…”  So the trumpet was sounded many times.  Now guess what was sounded in Acts 2:2 when the day of Pentecost began?  The trumpet.  So we should find nothing strange concerning that.

Now let’s come here to Exodus 23:16 and we will see that God expects us to keep the Feast of Firstfruits.  “And the feast of harvest, the firstfruits of thy labours, which thou hast sown in the field…”  Now then, that’s why beginning with Christ, and we’ll see in just a little bit, that’s why it comes down to Pentecost.  And Pentecost has got to be the day of the resurrection because that is the harvest of the firstfruits.  And that’s what’s the day of Pentecost pictures.

Now let’s come to Leviticus 23 and let’s see the instructions for it.  And let’s see what was done here and how it was done, and the way it was done, why it was done, and all those things.  And of course this contains all the holy days.  This tells us the Sabbath.  This tells us the holy days which are to be proclaimed in their seasons.  And in their seasons then, is to bring us the purpose of God.

Now let’s begin here in verse 9.  ”And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof…”  Now that was the harvest even though the Canaanites planted the seeds.  That didn’t contaminate the seeds.  Because you see, the seeds died in order for the plant to grow.  Now some people say, “Well, that contaminated the harvest.”  No, God says here you reap the harvest thereof.  He knew that they would come into the land at that time and that the harvest would be something that they would harvest, but God gave it to them so it was their harvest.  “…Then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest” (Lev. 23:9-10).  And we went through that concerning Joshua 5 and the wave sheaf offering day here just recently.

“And he shall wave the sheaf…”  Now it means in Hebrew “to elevate it.”  And this sheaf was called the premiere sheaf.  And this was to be done on the morrow after the Sabbath, which then is the first day of the week.  And it has to be the first day of the week during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.  It cannot be outside the Feast of Unleavened Bread because Jesus Christ is our Passover Who was resurrected and accepted as the Wave Sheaf offering of God so that He is the first of the firstfruits.  And that was on the first day of the week during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Now this year the only first day of the week during the Feast of Unleavened Bread is the day after Passover.

Let’s continue on with some of the other instructions we have here.  “And he shall [elevate] wave the sheaf before the LORD, to be accepted for you: on the morrow after the sabbath the priest shall wave it” (vs. 11).  And then he gives the offerings, what they were to bring there on that wave sheaf offering day.  Now verse 14.  “And ye shall eat neither bread, nor parched [grain] corn, nor green ears, until the selfsame day that ye have brought an offering unto your God…”  Now this could not happen until they got into the land.  That’s why they had the manna the 40 years.  Now then, here’s what they were to do, verse 15.  “And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave offering; seven sabbaths shall be complete: even unto the morrow after the seventh sabbath shall ye number fifty days; and ye shall offer a new [grain, or meal] meat offering unto the LORD.”  Now today is the Sabbath.  Today is the 49^th day.  Tomorrow is the morrow after the Sabbath, you see.  Now if you go to Monday, it’s the morrow after the morrow, see.  So you can’t have a Monday.  It is on a Sunday.

Now then, verse 17.  “Ye shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deal: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baken with leaven…”  Now when I first read that I thought that was a mistake because during the Days of Unleavened Bread, leaven is a type of sin.  And you know leaven is in this offering, and I think in one of the peace offerings, that God allows it.  But all the rest are unleavened.  Now why?  Why, of these loaves are they leavened, what is the purpose for that?  Well we’ll see a little bit later, there’s a proper purpose for leaven.  And this pictures something unique that’s why they are to be leavened.  Now notice, they are the firstfruits unto the LORD.  So here is the day of Pentecost, the 50^th day being celebrated as the firstfruits unto the LORD, and it’s the firstfruits of the grain harvest.  Now verse 21, “And ye shall proclaim on the selfsame day, that it may be an holy convocation unto you: ye shall do no servile work therein: it shall be  a statute for ever in all your dwellings throughout you generations.”

Now let’s look at some New Testament parallels to see the spiritual fulfillment of these things in relationship to the physical.  Let’s first of all come to 1 Corinthians 15 and we will see here the wave sheaf offering being Christ, and then we will also see how it applies to us.  And you see, one of the reasons that people in the world with their religions do not understand about the resurrection is because they don’t keep Pentecost and they don’t understand the truth of God.  Now they may keep a Pentecost, which is their Pentecost.  And as a matter of fact, I think this year that their Pentecost is on the same day that we keep ours.  But what have they ever learned from it, you see?  Here is the important thing.

Now let’s begin in verse 12.  “Now if Christ be preached that He rose from the dead, how say some among you that there is no resurrection of the dead?”  And we have the same problem and the same difficulty in religions today when they say there’s no resurrection but you go to heaven.  So what they are doing, they use the Bible but they deny the very words that are in here.  “But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then is Christ not risen: and if Christ be not risen, there is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.  Yea, and we are found false witnesses of God…”  So this is an incongruity.  How can you preach the truth of God and be a false witness?  So that’s why he made it incongruity.  But there are a lot of false preachers who preach false things about the truth of God.  “…Because we have testified of God that He raised up Christ: Whom He raised not up, if so be that the dead rise not.  For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised: and if Christ be not raised, your faith is in vain; ye are yet in your sins” (1 Cor. 15:12-17).  Now you see how important it is to understand about the resurrection, and also the ascension day when Christ was accepted of God the Father.

“Then they also which are fallen asleep in Christ are perished.  If in this life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable.  But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that [sleep] slept” (vs. 18-20).  He is the Wave Sheaf offering on the morrow after the Sabbath during the Days of Unleavened Bread.  And that is exactly what Christ fulfilled when He was resurrected and ascended to the Father on that first day of the week.

“For since by man came death, by man came also the resurrection of the dead.  For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.  But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits…”  So there it is twice.  Christ is the firstfruits.  “…Afterward they that are Christ’s at His coming.  Then cometh the end…” (vs. 21-24).  And then it goes on in with the summary of all the rest of the plan of God.

Now let’s come to James 1 and let’s see where we are also called firstfruits.  Christ is the firstfruits, we just read that.  Just like the wave sheaf offering on the wave sheaf offering day was the firstfruits, the premiere of the firstfruits.  So likewise all the harvest is the firstfruits.  And then on the 50^th day what do we have?  We have these are the firstfruits.

Now let’s read it here, James 1:17. “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, which Whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning.”  And brethren, let’s have that confidence in God just like it expresses here.  Now notice verse 18.  “Of His own will…”  See, God chose you, as we read earlier. “Of His own will begat He us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His [creation] creatures.”  It reads creatures but it means creation.  Because salvation is creation, you see, and we are to be the firstfruits.

Well then, when are we going to be resurrected?  The Feast of Trumpets has nothing to do with the firstfruits.  But the Feast of Pentecost has everything to do with the firstfruits, doesn’t it?  Yes, no doubt about it.  Let’s come here to Matthew 13 and let’s see how Christ likened the whole situation of being called into His Kingdom, and so forth.  And let’s see it.  And what do we have here?  We have a harvest.  We have two descriptions of a harvest.  And then also we’ll see something else.

But let’s begin right here in Matthew 13:18.  “Here ye therefore the parable of the sower.”  Now we come over here to verse 37.  “He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man.”  So the sower is Christ.  Now let’s come back to verse 18.  “Hear…the parable of the sower.  When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart” (Matt. 13:18-19)  Now let’s understand something.  If you allow Satan to do it, he can take it from you.  And then he can also put it into you just like he did Judas Iscariot.  So that’s why we have to guard what we have and not let it slip.

He said, “…This is he which received seed by the way side.  But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and [right away] anon with joy receiveth it.  Yet hath he not root in himself…”  Now we are to be rooted and grounded in the love of Christ, you see.  So those who have no root in themselves, notice what happens.  “…But [endures] drueth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.”  And he leaves, and he finds good excuse to go.  “He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh [unprofitable] unfruitful.”  We need to beware today.  “But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and understandeth it…”  And you understand it because you love God and keep His commandments.  And you understand it because of the Spirit that God has given, you see.  “…Which also [brings forth] beareth fruit…”  Now notice not everything is going to be the same.  Not everyone will produce the same.  “…Some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty” (vs. 19-23).  And so there’s going to be the growth.

Now let’s look at the other one.  Let’s look at the parable where the tares were sown.  And all of these are to explain the process of the calling and growing and overcoming, and then the harvest, which will be at the end of the age.  Now let’s pick it up here in verse 38.  “The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom [that is those who receive the Spirit of God]; but the tares are the children of the wicked one…”  And Satan is there to try and infiltrate every Church of God.  We’ve also seen the experience of what happens when that comes to its full.  Everything is turned  upside down.  Now notice, “The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the [age] world…”  Now when do the kingdoms of this world become the Kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, but the seventh trumpet.  Now notice the next sentence.  “…and the reapers are the angels” (vs. 38-39).

Now let’s look at some other scriptures and put this together.  Now we know what happens. “As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire…  The Son of man shall send forth His angels, and they shall gather out of His Kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity; and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth” (vs. 40-42).

Now, let’s look at some things here concerning this.  Let’s come to Matthew 24, since we’re right here in Matthew.  And we will also see when the end of the age comes.  Now let’s pick it up in Matthew 24:26.  We’re going to live to see this day.  “Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, He is in the desert; go not forth: behold, He is in the secret chambers; believe it not.  For as the lightning [coming] cometh out of the east, and [shining] shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Matt. 24:26-27).  Now what does that mean?  What is going to happen?  How are we going to understand this?

“For as lightning…”, so it’s going to happen all of a sudden.  And it will be kind of like a big blast of light, and then it will look like it condenses down into the light of day or like a sun.  And it will be seen to shine from the east to the west.  Just like the sun today.  Now what is the world going to think when they see that?  They’re going to think, “Here comes the anti-christ.  Invaders from outer space.  A meteor is going to hit the earth.”  As a matter of fact, just a few weeks ago I was watching a video on Discovery where they were showing how that the earth and the planets have been hit with space debris, meteorites hitting the earth.  So that’s what they’re going to think.  And they’re going to think, “Boy, we’ve got to marshal all of our forces here to fight against this.”  And so as a result, as it says there in Revelation 1, “Behold He comes with the clouds and every eye shall see Him.  And the tribes of the earth shall mourn.”  Because they know their day is coming.

Now let’s read on here.  Verse 29, “Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: and then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven...” (vs. 29-30).  So this is the sign of the Son of man in heaven.  And they will see it and it will come closer and closer and closer and closer to the earth.  This is going to be a momentous event.

“And He shall send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet…”  When was a great sound of a trumpet heard before, but on the Day of Pentecost when they were given the Ten Commandments.  “…And they shall gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other” (vs. 31).  Now notice when this is going to take place.  This parable gives us a little understanding.  Now I know it’s a parable.  “Now learn a parable of the fig tree; When his branch is yet tender, and [puts] putteth forth leaves, you know that summer is [near] nigh…” (vs. 32).  However, when we get to midsummer and into the fall what do we have?  We have ripe things, don’t we?  So this tells us that the resurrection is not going to be in the fall.  Right here this very parable tells us if we have eyes to see and ears to hear.

Let’s come to Hebrews 12 and let’s see the parallel that we found concerning the children of Israel when they came to Mt. Sinai.  And this is a lesson for us today brethren.  Verse 18, “For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touched the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with  [an arrow] a dart: and so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:)…” (Heb. 12:18-21).  Now I want you to understand this.  Get this scene in mind that we already covered back there in Exodus 20 concerning the giving of the Ten Commandments on the Day of Pentecost.  See how much greater our calling is.

“But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels…”  Now that’s what we’re going to see when we’re resurrected.  “To the general assembly and church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven…”  That’s where your name is recorded in the book of life.  “…And to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of just men made perfect…”  Now this is what we come to on a continuous basis.  But this is also what we are going to be resurrected to because as that sign of the Son of man, that light which shines from east to west comes down closer and closer and closer and closer to the earth, it’s going to act right according to the laws that God has given.  When it’s out here the earth is going to turn.  And then as it gets closer and closer and closer and closer to the earth it’s going to come down into the clouds.  Now we’re into the atmosphere and then it’s going to lock into position right over Jerusalem.

Now, you’ll have to come back tomorrow for the rest of the story.