The Feast of Pentecost: The Firstfruits of Elohim's Harvest
Recently we celebrated the Feast of Pentecost, or the Feast of Weeks, on June 12; 2011.We had a very good fellowship and enjoyed Yahweh’s presence and blessings.

Pentecost serves as a reminder that Elohim that grants His Holy Spirit to the firstfruits of His spiritual harvest. This festival is known by several names that derive from its meaning and timing. Also known as the Feast of Harvest (Exodus:23:16), it represents the firstfruits (Numbers:28:26) gathered as the result of the labor of those who completed the spring grain harvests in ancient Israel (Exodus:23:16).
It is also called the Feast of Weeks (Exodus:34:22), with this name coming from the seven weeks plus one day (50 days in all) that are counted to determine when to celebrate this festival (Leviticus:23:16). Similarly, in the New Testament, which was supposed to be written in Greek, this festival is known as Pentecost (Pentekostos in the original), which means "fiftieth". Among Jews the name for this festival is the Feast of Weeks, or Shavuot in Hebrew. The Jews recognize that this day holds something of great importance, they limit it to the Old Covenant and the giving of the Law on Mt. Sinai. There is no Biblical proof for this.

Except for a few of those Israelites, nobody received Elohim's Holy Spirit under the Old Covenant. Rom.11:8-11. Yahweh has given them the spirit of slumber, eyes that they should not see, and ears that they should not hear. So, spiritually, from the time of the Exodus (sometime around the 1400s B.C.) until the time that Paul wrote these things, these people hadn't been offered the Holy Spirit at all. Even till a few days before Pentecost in AD 31, the coming of the Holy Spirit by people was yet a future occurrence. So at the right time, Yahweh introduced the Holy Spirit to mankind with a mighty visible and audible display.

On the day of Pentecost, the apostles and believers numbering a hundred and twenty, were gathered in an upper room, with one mind, and continued there in prayers and waited for the coming of the promised Holy Spirit.
Modern evangelists give you the impression that after hearing one sermon you can be converted. It takes a lot more than that for Elohim to lead us to repentance. So much preparation was needed to bring these people up. During the ministry of John the Baptist and Messiah, Elohim was leading these people to repentance. Then, when they heard Peter's sermon, with the help of Elohim's Holy Spirit giving the sermon and leading them, they repented and were baptized.

You Shall Receive Power.
Now, when we are baptized by the Holy Spirit, what is it that we are receiving? It is "power." In Acts 1:8, Messiah said, ‘but you shall receive power, after that the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and you shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.’
II Tim. 1:7, ‘For Elohim has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.’ 
Now the Elohim of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Spirit. (Romans 15:13)
It is the Holy Spirit that empowers us, or enables us to accomplish things.  Zech.4:6: Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, says the LORD of hosts.
In Gen. 1: The Spirit of Elohim brooded over the face of the deep, looking down on the disorganized state of confusion, and then Elohim sent forth His Spirit. Out of that confusion came order and beauty and life. When Elohim sent forth His Spirit to us, what kind of condition were we in? We were  just as confused as everybody else in Babylon . We were headed for the grave. We were in varying degrees of destruction and disorder. When He sent forth His Spirit, transformation began. Elohim was creating!
The receiving of Elohim’s Holy Spirit is not for our use but for Elohim’s—that He might carry out His creative efforts in our lives.
Not a Power To Be Controlled :
In Acts 8., we read the story of Simon the sorcerer. When Simon saw that through laying on of the apostles' hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money. It is also very clear that he wanted the Holy Spirit for the wrong reasons.
He wanted to get it so that he would be glorified before people. He wanted people to worship him. There is no sin worse than idolatry. Simon made the mistake of thinking that he could manipulate this power of Elohim to his own end. It happens frequently to people in the world. Many people have made similar mistakes. The desire has to be right. Simon desired, but it obviously was not right. It was rejected immediately, because it was for self-centered reasons. In I Cor.12:1-2, we read that He is willing to give us the gifts of His Spirit. He's very willing to give us His Spirit in abundant amounts. But it is conditioned by the quality of our desire. If we want it for selfish reasons, we are not going to get it. If we want it to glorify Him, we are going to get it. There's no doubt about it.

Given for the Common Good :
I Cor.12:7: Every man is given his gifts by the spirit, that he may use it for the common good. This tells us two things:
Everybody gets gifts from the Spirit of Elohim. Nobody has been left out. The most important thing of all is that the gift is given for the common good.
The second purpose Elohim gives His Spirit is for the good of the church. Even in this, Elohim retains control and gives it according to His will.
The Spirit is given for the benefit of the church—to empower it. We don't need the gift of tongues anymore, except in extremely rare instances. Today, we have no need of the interpretation of tongues. Does the church benefit because someone can pray to Elohim in a different language? Not at all. We should occasionally ask Elohim to give His gifts as He sees fit—to benefit the church and to glorify Him.
For Our Growth in His Image
The third purpose Elohim gives His Spirit is for our own spiritual well-being and growth. This is important because from it comes the power to yield to Elohim, and be prepared for Elohim's Kingdom and glorify Him along the way.