Wave Sheaf Offering Day

Revelation Series #16

Fred R. Coulter—April 15, 2006

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Greetings brethren! Welcome to the Sabbath during the Feast of Unleavened Bread!

We're going to talk about the resurrection of Christ very briefly, but we're going to focus in on the Wave Sheaf Offering Day and the meaning of it. Not only is this going to be for the Feast of Unleavened Bread, but this is also found in God's Plan for Mankind Revealed by His Sabbath and Holy Days.

So, as we do with all the Holy Days—since this is during the Feast of Unleavened Bread—let's come to Lev. 23:9 where it starts talking about the Wave Sheaf Offering Day and the significance of this day as it is fulfilled through Jesus Christ. We are going to see that this is a tremendous and absolutely wonderful day, that is a celebration for God the Father and Jesus Christ. That's why it's not a Holy Day for us, but it's an important part of the fulfillment of the plan of God.

Leviticus 23:9: "And the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 'Speak to the children of Israel and say to them, "When you have come into the land which I give to you, and shall reap the harvest of it, then you shall bring the premier sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest"'" (vs 9-10).

This sheaf of the firstfruits was called "…the premiere sheaf…" It was a special barley sheaf that was cut, and it was cut at the end of the Sabbath during the Feast of Unleavened Bread to be waved on the first day of the week during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Now let me just say something here very important that we need to understand and grasp: The Jews do not count Pentecost correctly; this is the first day, the Wave Sheaf Offering Day. They calculate it, not from the Sabbath and then the first day of the week during Unleavened Bread. They calculate it from the Holy Day. What this significantly does is it rejects the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ as the Savior of mankind.

So, all of those who follow what the Jews are doing are following a pattern that rejects Jesus Christ, as they have not only in the Passover but also the Wave Sheaf Offering and Pentecost. Subsequently, because they reject Jesus Christ and do not accept the New Testament, they are cut off and do not have any understanding. You need to realize that that is a very important thing. We have to:

• do it the way that God says
• calculate it the way that God says
• count it the way that God says

—and then put the Scriptures together to get the full meaning of what these days mean.

Now let's see what the priest was to do with the sheaf, v 11: "And he shall wave… [elevate] …the sheaf before the LORD to be accepted for you…" This shows the acceptance of the resurrected Jesus Christ as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all the world, more importantly beginning with those who are the firstfruits of God, because then it goes on and connects directly to the Day of Pentecost, which then is the first resurrection.

Notice when it should be done: "…On the next day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it" (v 11). He does not say 'on the morrow after the Holy convocation,' being the Holy Day the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. This is the weekly Sabbath, then the morning afterward "…the priest shall wave it." Then he gives the instruction of what to do.

Now what we are to do is look at the fulfillment of this in the New Testament. This is what becomes so important and profound in understanding

• the things of God
• the way of God
• the Word of God

The Apostle Paul tells us the meaning of this day, and it also labels Christ as the Firstfruits. This tells us a part of the fulfillment of this day on the morrow after the Sabbath during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. It's appropriate that it happens at that particular time because it falls right in line with the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

This is why Jesus was crucified on the Passover Day. God uses all the Holy Days to fulfill major, epical, historical fulfillments of prophecy that He has given. This is why unless you understand the Holy Days you cannot understand the plan of God!

• Do the Protestants accept the Holy Days? No!
• Do they understand the plan of God? No!
• Do the Catholics accept the Holy Days? No!
• Do they understand the plan of God? No!
• Do the Jews accept the Holy Days? Yes!

—with a caveat that they changed the Passover and they changed the Wave Sheaf Offering Day, and hence, they have changed Pentecost.

• Rejecting Jesus, do they understand prophecy? No!

You have to have both!

• you must have the Old Testament writings and the prophecies contained therein
• you must have the New Testament writings and the interpretation and the prophecies there

We are going to see a little later that Jesus opened the minds of the apostles to understand the prophecies concerning Him that are found in the Law, the Prophets and the Psalms. That becomes profoundly important, because what Jesus is telling us is that the New Testament interprets the Old Testament, not the other way around. We need to remember that and grasp that.

1-Corinthians 15:20: "But now Christ has been raised from the dead; He has become the Firstfruit … [this interprets Lev. 23, the premiere sheaf] … of those who have fallen asleep"—resurrection from the dead.

That's why that wave sheaf was a special one that was bound with a special ceremonial ribbon and then was cut. It was cut right as the Sabbath ends during the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and then it was lifted up and carried to the altar of burnt offerings and laid alongside the altar of burnt offerings. Having the firstfruit sheaf cut at that particular time signifies Christ being resurrected while He was in the tomb. But He did not ascend to the Father until the morning of the first day of the week at the time that they had the Wave Sheaf Offering. He is the First of the firstfruits!

Verse 21: "For since by man came death, by Man also camethe resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the Firstfruit; then, those who are Christ's at His coming" (vs 21-23). Very important! That has to fill in with all the Holy Days. So, Christ is the Firstfruit.

Colossians 1—again we have a very misunderstood verse for those who do not accept Jesus, that He was God before He became human. Read the Gospel of John, that's all you have to do!

• Christ tells us where He came from
• Christ tells us that He was in heaven before
• Christ tells us that He prayed to the Father to give Him the glory that He had with the Father before the world existed

The only way that those who believe that Jesus was only a man can believe that if they ignore all of this. Jesus said, 'Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words shall not pass away' That's why Jesus told the Jews that He wasn't going to give them a sign. They wanted a sign. They like miracles and magical things, and they can all gather around and revel in it just like people do when there is an apparition of Mary. Oh they come weeping, kneeling, rosarying and crying—thousands come! Christ would not, to those Jews, give them a sign. He said, 'The only sign I'm going to give you is the sign of Jonah the prophet. As Jonah was in the belly of the great fish for three days and three nights, so shall the Son of man be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights' and He turned and walked away.

Since Jesus said that His words are Truth, that He preached the words of the Father, He spoke nothing that the Father had not commanded Him to speak. If the Word of God is true, it will not, cannot, fail and 'heaven and earth will pass away' before the words of Christ can pass away. How long was He in the tomb? Three days and three nights! In AHarmony of the Gospels we have a full explanation of it there and a chart showing the three days and three nights. When the Passover is in the middle of the week we have the same sequence of days that were in the week when Jesus was crucified and resurrected. That's why this is very important for us to understand.

Colossians 1:14: "In Whom [Christ] we have redemption through His own blood…" Remember this:

• If Christ is not raised then you are still in your sins!
• If Christ did not ascend to heaven to be accepted of God the Father on the Wave Sheaf Offering Day, you have no justification!

It's very important to realize.

Verse 14: "In Whom we have redemption through His own blood, even the remission of sins; Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation" (vs 14-15). This is where they get hung up. "…the firstborn of all creation" does not have to do with the physical creation of things that God has made in the universe. This has to do with all of those who are created—salvation is creation—in the image of Jesus Christ and are resurrected as Jesus was resurrected from the dead.

Verse 16: "Because by Him were all things created…" If He was the Firstborn of creation, how could He create all things? You only can have the explanation that I gave.

"…the things in heaven and the things on earth, the visible and the invisible, whether they be thrones, or lordships, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him and for Him. And He is before all, and by Him all things subsist" (vs 16-17). That's what it says in Heb. 1:2, that He upholds the world by the Word of His power; and that He is the express image and the brightness of the glory of the Father.

Verse 18: "And He is the Head of the body, the Church; Who is the beginning, the firstborn from among the dead…" That's interprets v 14. He is the Firstborn of all of those created through the resurrection of the dead.

"…so that in all things He Himself might hold the preeminence. For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell" (vs 18-19). That's quite a wonderful thing talking about Jesus.

Let's see what Jesus looks like, what Jesus said of Himself and what the message was to John. For this series of Revelation this becomes very important

Revelation 1:4: "John to the seven churches that are in Asia…" Of course, this is prophetic. At that time it was prophetic and it has a fulfillment at the end-time. All three interpretations of Rev. 2 & 3 are true.

"…Grace and peace be to you from Him Who is, and Who was, and Who is to come; and from the seven spirits that are before His throne; and from Jesus Christ, the faithful Witness, the Firstborn from the dead, and the Ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him Who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood, and has made us kings and priests to God and His Father; to Him be the glory and the sovereignty into the ages of eternity. Amen." (vs 4-6). That is quite an introduction and is a summary of what all you're going to find in the book of Revelation.

Now let's see what John saw, v 17: "And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as if dead; but He laid His right hand upon me, saying to me, 'Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last, even the One Who is living; for I was dead, and behold, I am alive into the ages of eternity. Amen. And I have the keys of the grave and of death'" (vs 17-18).

• without Christ there is no resurrection
• without the resurrection of Christ there is no resurrection of anyone else

That's what Paul said.

Now let's see what Christ looks like in His glorified form, and let's understand what a profound thing this is. I want to cover this and then we are going to look at the men in the Bible who were able to see the glory of God. John was able see the glory of Jesus Christ, and when we get to Rev. 4 & 5, he also saw the glory of the Father.

Verse 12: "And I turned to see the voice that spoke with me; and when I turned, I saw seven golden lampstands; and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of man…" (vs 12-13). Let's understand these lampstands are in a circle, and Christ, being the Head of the Church, is in the middle; very important to understand. This is not like the lampstand that was in the temple, otherwise Christ could not be in the middle of them.

"…clothed in a garment reaching to the feet, and girded about the chest with a golden breastplate. And His head and hair were like white wool, white as snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire; and His feet were like fine brass, as if they glowed in a furnace; and His voice was like the sound of many waters. And in His right hand He had seven stars, and a sharp two-edged sword went out of His mouth, and His countenance was as the sun shining in its full power. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as if dead" (vs 13-17). This is what Christ looks like in His full power and glory.

Now let's look at those who were able to see the glory of God. We find three distinct instances recorded in the Bible:

Moses :

This is why Moses was called the preeminent or the premiere prophet and lawgiver of God, because he saw God in His glorified form. Not face-to-face, but he saw Him.

After the destroying of the golden calf and so forth, Moses is pleading with God. He was able to intervene and persuade God not to destroy all the children of Israel for their sins. Moses asked God, 'If I could see Your glory…' Because of the intercession of Moses, the children of Israel were spared.

Exodus 33:17: "And the LORD said to Moses, 'I will do this thing also that you have spoken, for you have found grace in My sight, and I know you by name.' And he [Moses] said, 'I beseech You, show me Your glory.' And He said, 'I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. And I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will have mercy on whom I will have mercy.' And He said… [to Moses] …'You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live'" (vs 17-20). The reason being is that flesh cannot exist in the presence of the glory of God!. So therefore, Moses was only able to see a similitude of Him.

Verse 21: "And the LORD said, 'Behold, there is a place by Me, and you shall stand upon a rock. And it will be, while My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. And I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back parts. But My face shall not be seen'" (vs 21-23)—that happened.

So, Moses hewed two more tables of stone for God to write the Ten Commandments on. Remember, the first ones that were written on were stones that God had hewed. Then He wrote the Ten Commandments on them. When Moses came down from the mount and saw all the worshiping of the golden calf and all the rebellion and everything that was going on with the children of Israel, he threw them down and broke them. God made Moses make new ones. But also this signifies that there is a step removed from God that was caused by the people's sin because now the two tables of stone were hewn by Moses, and he took them up and gave them to God.

Exodus 34:5: "And the LORD came down in the cloud, and stood with him there… [there was a cloud so he couldn't see Him directly] …and proclaimed the name of the LORD. And the LORD passed by before him and proclaimed, 'The LORD, the LORD God, merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy to the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but Who will by no means clear the guilty… [without repentance] … visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children's children, to the third and to the fourth generation'" (vs 5-7).

That is referring to the second commandment of those who worship idols. If you worship idols you hate God, so therefore, you bring upon your progeny to the third and fourth generation the curse of your idol-worship and breaking the commandments of God.

Just an aside, stop and think here: What one physical thing can a man make or use—be it an idol, beads, a temple—that is greater than a broken heart and a contrite spirit, and seeking to worship God in Spirit and in Truth, and direct access to God the Father and Jesus Christ? There's nothing greater than that! Brethren, we need to understand that is a tremendous and wonderful blessing that God has opened up because of the death and resurrection and acceptance of Jesus Christ.

Isaiah :

Isaiah in vision was able to see this. We're going to see a little later the similarity between what takes place here and what is shown in the vision in Isa. 6 that we find in Rev. 4 & 5. We come all the way from Moses to Isaiah.

David did see a simile of God in the Holy place when he had the Ark of the Covenant in a special tent that was in his house before the temple was built. But he didn't see God as Moses did, and he did not see God as Isaiah did.

Isaiah 6:1: "In the year that King Uzziah died, I then saw the LORD sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and His train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphim; each one had six wings; with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one cried to another, and said, 'Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory.' And the foundations of the threshold shook at the voice of the one who cried…" (vs 1-4). We will see about the foundations in relationship to Christ coming to be accepted of God the Father on the Wave Sheaf Offering Day.

"…and the house was filled with smoke. Then I said, 'Woe is me! For I am undone; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts'" (vs 4-5). Quite a fantastic thing that Isaiah experienced! When God does so, He does so to give inspiration to those who are going to speak, to those who are going to write that they will do exactly as God wants done.

• Do you think that Moses would have done anything differently than God commanded Him after talking to God on the mount, after seeing His glory?
• Do you think that Isaiah would have written lies and prophesied lies after he had seen God in vision on His throne?
• I dare say absolutely not!
• Would you?
• Of course not!

Verse 6: "Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he laid it upon my mouth and said, 'Lo, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away, and your sin atoned for.' And I heard the voice of the LORD, saying, 'Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?'…." (vs 6-8). God the Father, Jesus Christ and also the angels!

Then Isaiah said, "…'Here am I; send me!' And He said, 'Go, and tell this people, "You hear indeed, but do not understand; and you see indeed, but do not perceive"'" (vs 8-9).

This is what happens to the average person concerning the Word of God because they don't want to obey it. They want to retain their sinful nature, their myths and their lies that they get from the religious teachers, which make them feel good. It appeals to their carnality, and it appeals to their deceitful nature.

Verse 10: "Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and return, and be healed." Jesus quoted that in Matt. 13 and in the parallel accounts in Mark and Luke, that God blinds people who do not believe.

Isn't that exactly what happens in the 'religious' world? First thing they want to do is say, 'Well, God didn't mean this,' and 'God didn't mean that,' and 'We can't trust the Word of God. It was compiled by men hundreds of years later.' Absolute lie! But they have that because their minds are closed, their eyes are shut and they can't understand, and they have no door to salvation unless they repent. That's why this day is so important.

James, Peter & John :

Now let's come one step further. Let's see where the disciples were given a vision of what Jesus would look like in His glorified form. This becomes very important because this gives equal or greater status to the apostles. In this case it was James, Peter and John. Not all the apostles saw this, just James, Peter, and John. God does not show Himself to people just because they desire it. He doesn't show Himself to anyone at anytime. Pat Robertson said, 'God spoke to me.' No, God didn't speak to him!

Christ did this to give them equal and greater authority than Moses, because if God showed His glory to Moses, and if God showed His glory to Isaiah, this also shows that the authority that they had came directly from God:

• not by any man
• not by boards of men
• not by rabbis
• not by priests
• not by Levites

but by Jesus Christ Who was God manifest in the flesh. He wanted to encourage them. He wanted them to know exactly what it was going to be like at the resurrection.

Matthew 17:1: "And after six days, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and his brother John, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; and His face shined as the sun, and His garments became white as the light" (vs 1-2)—just like we saw in Rev. 1.

Verse 3: "Then behold, there appeared to them Moses and Elijah talking with Him." It doesn't say they were actually there; we will see this is a vision. In vision you can see many different things. This shows the authority that He gave to Moses, the authority that He gave to Elijah, that He is going to confer to the apostles, in this case the leading apostles: Peter, James, and John.

Verse 4: "And Peter answered and said to Jesus, 'Lord, it is good for us to be here. If You desire, let us make three tabernacles here: one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.' While he was speaking, a bright cloud suddenly overshadowed them; and behold, a voice out of the cloud said, 'This is My Son, the Beloved, in Whom I delight. Listen to Him!'" (vs 4-5).

A very important thing for us: If you want to understand about God the Father and Jesus Christ you have to listen to the words that they have spoken, which have been recorded here in the Bible! Not some man, not some priest, not some pope, not some evangelist, but Christ. "…Listen to Him."

Verse 6: "And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces in extreme terror. But Jesus came and touched them, and said, 'Arise, and do not be terrified.' And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus alone" (vs 6-8).

What happened here was not literal, but a vision, v 9: "Now, as they were descending from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, 'Tell the vision to no one until the Son of man has risen from the dead.'

These are the only occasions in the Bible where we find that men were able to see the glory of God.

• Moses saw it directly
• Isaiah he saw it in vision
• Peter, James, and John saw it in vision

This is what motivated them to make sure that in the writing and canonization of the New Testament that it would be the Words of God as Christ had defined it and as Christ had taught.

Now, just to emphasize that point, let's understand exactly the motivation behind writing the New Testament and why we can trust in the words of God, and why this becomes so important, and why this Wave Sheaf Offering Day becomes so profound in the meaning of the plan of God with the acceptance of Jesus Christ by God the Father on the Wave Sheaf Offering Day.

2-Peter 1:14: "Knowing that shortly the putting off of my tabernacle… [he's saying he's going to die] …will come, even as our Lord Jesus Christ has signified to me. But I will make every effort that, after my departure, you may always have a written remembrance of these things in order to practice them for yourselves" (vs 14-15).

This thing of oral tradition is just a myth and a lie by men so they can put in their own way. God has it written down.

• He told Moses to write
• He told the prophets to write
• He told Samuel to write
• He told Hezekiah to write
• He told His apostles to write

That way, with the inspired Word of God, there isn't going to be any dispute. It's important to understand that because what's in the Bible is how God is going to judge each one of us. Think on that for a minute. Think of the lies that come from the pulpit of men who presume to say Jesus lied; the Word of God lies. They are the liars. They are the ones who are blinded.

Notice what Peter says, v 16: "For we did not follow cleverly concocted myths as our authority…" What does Christendom follow today? Nothing but myths, lies, fables through the occult holidays while they reject the Holy Days and Feasts of God.

"…when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His magnificent glory; because He received glory and honor from God the Father when the voice came to Him from the Majestic Glory, 'This is My Son, the Beloved, in Whom I am well pleased.' And this is the voice from heaven that we heard when we were with Him on the Holy mountain" (vs 16-18)—which we just read in Matt. 17.

Verse 19: "We also possess the confirmed prophetic Word…"—the inspired word confirmed by Christ. You can't have anything greater than that—can you?

"…to which you do well to pay attention… [not argue with] …as to a light shining in a dark place…" (v 19). This is the Light of God to bring you out of spiritual darkness.

"…until the day dawns… [that's the return of Christ] …and the morning star arises in your hearts" (v 19)—when you are resurrected.

Verse 20 is going to be very important when we go through the account of the resurrection and ascension of Christ: "Knowing this first… [this is a primary thing to understand] …that no prophecy of Scripture…" That does not restrict it to just prophetic things, because the "…prophecy of Scripture…" means anything that was spoken under the inspiration of God or written under the inspiration of God is a prophecy.

"…originated as anyone's own private interpretation; because prophecy was not brought at any time by human will, but the Holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit" (vs 20-21).

• The Holy Spirit is directed by Jesus Christ
• The Holy Spirit is called the Spirit of Truth

We can have full confidence in the Word of God, the Truth of God and the things that we need to understand. As it relates to this most important day—the Sabbath during the Feast of Unleavened Bread when the resurrection occurred—and the next day, the Wave Sheaf Offering Day, when Jesus was accepted as the first of the firstfruits. This is why it's so absolutely marvelous that we trust the Word of God.

One other caveat here: Carnal men like to take apparent contradictions to fight Scripture against Scripture so they can cast them aside! The way God wants us to do it is to take line upon line, precept upon precept, a little here, a little there, and add it together. And lo, guess what's going to happen? The contradictions will disappear. They will be gone, because we're dealing with the Word of Truth, which is:

• the Word of God
• the God of Truth
• the Holy Spirit of Truth
• the Truth written by the apostles

who were Holy men, as well as the other writings contained in the Bible from the beginning to the end; all of God.

Now we're going to look at the events that took place on the resurrection day, and then the ascension on the Wave Sheaf Offering Day.

Now we're going to look at John and then Luke and Mark when the women came to the tomb early the first day of the week, and we're going to understand some things concerning the resurrection of Jesus Christ. As Jesus promised He would be in the tomb exactly three days and three nights, so He was put in the tomb just as the Passover Day was ending at sunset, and that was on a Wednesday.

Then you come forward three days and three nights and it puts you on the regular weekly Sabbath. Does that sound familiar where we started out? Yes, indeed! He had to be resurrected at exactly that same time. But in order to understand what happened, we need to come to the first day of the week and then put the events together that happened on the first day of the week so we can go back and see what happened when Jesus was resurrected. Then we will come forward to when He ascended into heaven to the Father.
John 20: "Now on the first day of the weeks…" That is the first day counting to Pentecost. That is on a Sunday, the first day of the week, and it was the Wave Sheaf Offering Day.

"…while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb…" (v 1). She came alone, then the other women came and joined her. They probably had already decided that in the morning they were going to go and take the spices and to do more wrapping of Jesus' body. So, she started while it was still dark. But understand that, as she was walking, the sun was rising; it was getting lighter and lighter.

"…Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb; and she saw that the stone had been taken away from the tomb" (v 1). Immediately she didn't know what to do; she didn't understand what was happening.

Verse 2: "Then she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, 'They have taken away the Lord from the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.'"

Luke 24:1: "Now, on the first day of the weeks, they came to the tomb at early dawn, bringing the spices that they had prepared; and certain others came with them. But they found the stone rolled away from the tomb; and when they entered it, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus." (vs 1-3). Here the other women came—Mary had come first and ran to tell Peter and John—and found exactly the same thing. How much later it was we don't know, but they didn't know that Mary had already been there.

Verse 4: "And it came to pass thatwhile they were puzzling over this, suddenly two men… [angels] … in shining garments stood by them. And as they bowed their faces to the ground, being filled with fear, they said to them, 'Why are you seeking the living among the dead?'" (vs 4-5).

Let's understand a very important and profound point: No one witnessed the resurrection of Jesus Christ!

• the women who came to the tomb didn't see it
• the soldiers who were guarding the tomb didn't see it

When they came early in the morning on the first day of the week—the Wave Sheaf Offering Day—He wasn't there. There's no such thing as an Easter Sunday resurrection. That is a lie, a fiction!Jesus was gone!

Verse 6, they said: "'He is not here, but has risen: remember when He spoke to you whileHe was yet in Galilee, saying, "It is necessary for the Son of man to be delivered into the hands of sinful men, and to be crucified, and to arise the third day"?' Then they remembered His words; and after returning from the tomb, they related these things to the eleven and to all the rest" (vs 6-9). So, they got there while Mary Magdalene was apparently telling them, because it says:

Verse 10: Now, it was Mary Magdalene and Joanna and Mary, the mother of James, and the others with them, who told these things to the apostles." But, of course, they didn't believe it.

Mark 16:2: "And very early on the first day of the weeks, at the rising of the sun…" Mary started out when it was still dark and now we have the sun rising; they were coming to the tomb. This is the parallel account of Luke 24.

Verse 3: "And they were asking themselves, 'Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance to the tomb?' For it was a massive stone. But when they looked up, they saw that the stone had been rolled away. And after entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right, clothed in a white robe; and they were very frightened. But he said to them, 'Do not be afraid. You are seeking Jesus the Nazarene, Who was crucified. He has risen; He is not here. Look, there is the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter that He goes before you into Galilee; there you shall see Him, as He said to you.'" (vs 3-7). Quite an interesting thing—isn't it?

Now let's see what happened next, and this will help us understand about the resurrection of Jesus, because He had to be raised from the dead exactly three days and three nights from the time He was put in the tomb. He had to be raised at the end of the Sabbath. Remember, just like as we started out when they cut that premier sheaf for the Wave Sheaf Offering, it was cut right as the weekly Sabbath had ended, or was ending. That signified Christ being raised from the dead, no longer connected to the earth as it were; no longer earthy.

Let's see what else occurred. After Mary Magdalene came, then the other women came, John 20:3: "As a result, Peter and the other disciple went out and came to the tomb. Now, the two ran together, but the other disciple ran faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and he stooped down and saw the linen cloths lying there, but he did not enter. Then Simon Peter came following him, and he went into the tomb and saw the linen cloths lying, And the napkin that had been on His head, not lying with the linen cloths but folded up in a place by itself. Then the other disciple, who had come to the tomb first, also went in and saw these things; and he believed. For they did not yet understand the Scripture, which decreed that He must rise from the dead" (vs 3-9). Christ had to give them that understanding later.

Let's analyze this for just a minute and see what this is telling us. We know that when Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus took Jesus' body off the cross that they had a hundred pounds of spices and aloe, and they wrapped His body. It was not like a shroud. The Shroud of Turin is a lying fiction; it has nothing to do with Christ. They didn't lay a shroud over Him. He was wrapped with the linen. They probably had strips of linen about six to nine inches wide; probably more like about six inches, and they would wrap His body, beginning with His feet, and add in the spices as they were wrapping, go right on up on up His torso all the way up, and then do His body and then do His arms, and then cover His head with a special covering that was called a napkin.

They saw the linen cloths lying. What did they see? It would be a profound witness of the resurrection of Christ but to see the wrappings of these linen cloths still in their wrapped form, but no body in it and perhaps with a little sag in the middle of the wrapped cloth showing that He wasn't there! What would this demonstrate? This would demonstrate that:

• no one took the body
• if they would have taken the body they would have taken the burial wrappings with them

Wouldn't you think? If they stole the body and didn't want to take the wrappings with them then they would have to unwrap it or cut it off.

So, they saw the linen cloths lying there to demonstrate that as a spirit being Christ did not need to have the cloth removed to be resurrected. He just simply rose through it. To demonstrate that He was alive we have this: the linen napkin, which was on His head, was folded and put in another place!

Don't you think if anyone was going to steal His body, would they not have taken the napkin too? Whoever the group claiming that the disciples stole the body away… The Jews still believe that lying fable to this day because they won't take the New Testament and read what it says and look at the evidence. If you were a forensic expert today what would you have to conclude? That the napkin was folded up and put in another place and no one had gone into the tomb, except Jesus was put in there when He was dead!

• You'd have to conclude that He was resurrected from the dead!
• You would have to conclude that He deliberately folded the napkin and put it in another place to demonstrate that He was alive!

That's quite an important thing to understand.

Now let's look at some Psalms which bear on the resurrection of Christ. In Psa. 16 we find something very interesting.

What do you suppose that may have been the first thoughts of Jesus when He was resurrected? and He's in the tomb and He realizes that He is alive? His last thought on the cross was saying, 'Father into Your hands I commend My spirit,' and He died. What would He think right after He's resurrected?

If you've ever been unconscious or if you've ever had an operation where you've gone under sedation, when you wake up your thoughts are entirely different—right? Well, we have it right here, maybe these are the words of Christ. A prophecy of the words of Christ, the very first ones that He spoke when He was raised from the dead:

Psalm 16:8: "I have set the LORD always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore, My heart is glad, and My glory rejoices; My flesh also shall rest in safety, for You will not abandon My soul to the grave… [You will not leave Me in the grave] … neither will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption" (vs 8-10).

That happened to Jesus. Probably His first thought was to praise God for:

• the tremendous and wonderful blessing of the resurrection
• that He did not see corruption
• that He didn't leave Him in the grave
• that the Word of God was true
• that the covenant that Jesus Christ and God the Father made before Jesus came to the earth in the flesh—that He would raise Him back to life when He died—was fulfilled

Verse 11: "You will make known to Me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy…."

Now we're going to see that on the Wave Sheaf Offering Day Jesus came again into the presence of God the Father. "…At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (v 11).

Psalm 23 is another one, which I think are the very words of Christ after He was resurrected and thanking and praising God. There are many, many lessons we can learn out of this, but let's think of it in the praising of God the Father by Jesus Christ after He was resurrected from the dead. Jesus did not stay in the tomb very long. Where did Jesus go?

• He was raised from the dead
• the burial clothes were there
• the napkin was folded up
• His first conscious thoughts were probably thanking God of the fulfillment of Psa. 16
• Then, since He was a spirit being, He merely walked through the stone that covered the tomb
• the soldiers didn't see Him when He came out the other side because He would be in the heart of the earth three days and three nights

 He could not have stayed there very long at all, got right out.

Where would He have gone? He didn't ascend until the next morning as we are going to see! Well, right near there is the Garden of Gethsemane, and in the Garden of Gethsemane was the place where Jesus always prayed. As a matter of fact, the night of the Passover—after He had the Passover with the apostles—they went there and He prayed for three hours and then was arrested. So, Jesus probably went out to His, as it were, familiar or favorite praying place in the Garden of Gethsemane, and perhaps this was His prayer:

Psalm 23:1: "The LORD is my Shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul…" (vs 1-3). His soul and His body would not see corruption; yes, restored through the power of the resurrection

"…He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake" (v 3)—to do the will of God. Isn't that what Jesus said? 'Lo, I come to do the will of the Father Who sent Me!'

Verse 4: "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death… [He just experienced it] …I will fear no evil…" Did He have any fear when He went through the scourging and crucifixion? No!

"…for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table for me in the presence of my enemies…" (vs 4-5). Quite a fantastic thing! You talk about preparing right in the presence of the enemies. The soldiers were guarding the tomb, and He walked right out. The civil government of the Romans was against Him; the religious government of the Jews was against Him; His own apostles didn't believe Him until later when He opened their minds. You talk about preparing "…a table in the presence of my enemies..."

"…You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever" (vs 5-6).

Let's see another prophecy about Jesus, and let's look at this as having to do with also His prayer of the resurrection:

Psalm 108:1 "O God, my heart is fixed; I will sing and I will give praise, even with my glory. Awake, harp and lyre; I will awake early… [a type of the resurrection] …I will praise You, O LORD, among the people; and I will sing praises to You among the nations… [yet to happen] …for Your mercy is great above the heavens; and Your Truth reaches unto the clouds. Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, and Your glory above all the earth, so that Your beloved may be delivered… [which He was] … save with Your right hand, and answer me. God has spoken in His Holiness: 'I will rejoice…'" (vs 1-7). Quite a wonderful thing that Christ experienced!

David wrote Psa. 63, and he did see a similitude of God in the small little tabernacle where he had the Ark of the Covenant that was in his house after it was retrieved from Kirjath-Jearim. Let's look at it from the point of view of the resurrected Christ and what He was thinking:

Psalm 63:1: "O God, You are my God…" Think of Him now praying in the Garden of Gethsemane, praying all that night thanking God for resurrecting Him from the dead and waiting for the time when it was time for the fulfillment of the Wave Sheaf Offering.

"…earnestly I will seek You! My soul thirsts for You… [which it did when He was in the flesh] …My flesh longs for You, as in a dry and thirsty land where no water is, to see Your power…" (vs 1-2).

• He knew that He was going back to God the Father
• He knew that He was going to ascend into heave
• He knew that He was going to see the sanctuary of God again

Verse 2: "To see Your power and Your glory—as I have seen You in the sanctuary. Because Your loving kindness is better than life, my lips shall praise You" (vs 1-3). Quite a wonderful thing!

Now let's talk about the Wave Sheaf Offering Day and the ascension of Jesus Christ, John 20:10: "Then the disciples went away again to their home. But Mary stood outside the tombweeping; and as she wept, she stooped down and looked into the tomb. And she saw two angels in white who were sitting, one at the head and the other at the feet, where the body of Jesus had been laid" (vs 11-12)—because she could see also the burial cloths.

Verse 13: "And they said to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping?' She said to them, 'Because they have taken away my Lord, and I do not know where they have laid Him.' And after saying these things, she turned around and saw Jesus standing, but did not know that it was Jesus" (vs 13-14). He was able to manifest Himself in a form that she couldn't see Him as He was. There was a specific purpose for that.

Verse 15: "Jesus said to her, 'Woman, why are you weeping? Whom are you seeking?' Thinking that He was the gardener, she said to Him, 'Sir, if you have carried Him off, tell me where you have laid Him, and I will take Him away.' Jesus said to her, 'Mary.' Turning around…" (vs 15-16). She apparently turned and was crying and wasn't looking at the man and just saying 'Oh, if you'd just tell me where He is.'

"…Turning around, she said to Him, 'Rabboni'; that is to say, "Teacher." Jesus said to her, 'Do not touch Me, because I have not yet ascended to My Father. But go to My brethren and tell them that I am ascending to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God'" (vs 16-17).

This was still in the morning. When was the Wave Sheaf Offering to be elevated for the first of the firstfruits? In the morning, somewhere right around nine o'clock in the morning! So, this fits the timeframe. Mary Magdalene went and told them; Jesus ascended into heaven; He was accepted of God the Father.

Let's see another vision in Psa. 24, which talks about the acceptance of Christ. Then we will see the fulfillment of that. There's quite an interesting sequence of things here with the Psalms:

• Psa. 22 is about the crucifixion of Christ
• Psa.23 is about the resurrection
• Psa. 24 is about Jesus' ascension into heaven and being accepted

Let's think of it this way, in Psa. 24 are some of the thoughts of Jesus as He is ascending to the Father, and He's looking down on the earth:

Psalm 24:1: "The earth is the LORD'S, and the fullness of it, the world, and those who dwell in it." As He's ascending He sees the earth, He sees the land, He sees the oceans.

Verse 2: "For He [Christ] has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters. Who shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? Or who shall stand in His Holy place? He [Christ] who has clean hands and a pure heart…" (vs 2-4). This may be the angels singing as Christ is ascending.

"…[who has not lifted up his soul to vanity and has not sworn deceitfully. He shall receive the blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation" (vs 4-5). Quite a wonderful thing! Just imagine how Christ is ascending.

Verse 7: "Lift up your heads, O you gates…" The gates where He would walk through to go to the throne of God the Father and be accepted by God the Father as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all the world, all mankind.

"…and be lifted up, O you everlasting doors; that the King of glory may come in" (v 7). That is Christ, the King of glory!

• the One Who conquered death
• the One Who overcame sin
• the One Who overcome the pulls of the flesh
• the One Who was crucified

And yet, in His days of His flesh He cried out in fear and trembling to the One Who was able to save Him from death—God the Father—and

• now He's ascending
• now He's at the gate
• now He's walking into the presence of God the Father

Verse 8: "Who is this King of glory? The LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle." Hadn't He overcome everything? Yes!

• He had just overcome Satan the devil
• He had just overcome all the demons
• He had just overcome death
• He was now resurrected

strong and mighty in battle, and that was in the battle for us. By the grace of God He tasted death for every one of us that He could be resurrected and ascend to God the Father to be that perfect sacrifice and our High Priest at the right hand of God the Father.

Verse 9: "Lift up your heads, O you gates; lift them up, you everlasting doors; that the King of glory may come in. Who is this King of glory? The LORD of hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah." (vs 9-10).

Now let's see what Jesus saw when He was resurrected to come in the presence of God the Father. We know this by vision that was given to John. Let's look at it this way: This is also what Jesus saw. I want you to picture the angels singing in glory and power that Christ had overcome; that He now is going to walk into the presence of God the Father, see God the Father, and they are going to embrace each other for the very first time since Jesus left to become a human being. Now here's the setting that He saw. And we're blessed to have this given to the Apostle John.

Revelation 4:1: "After these things I looked, and behold, a door opened in heaven…" Didn't we just talk about the door? Didn't we just talk about the everlasting gates? Yes!

"…and the first voice that I heard was as if a trumpet were speaking with me, saying, 'Come up here, and I will show you the things that must take place after these things.' And immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was set in heaven, and One was sitting on the throne" (vs 1-2).

This is what God the Father looks like in appearance: great, glorious and marvelous, v 3: "And He Who was sitting was in appearance like a jasper stone and a sardius stone; and a rainbow was around the throne, like an emerald in its appearance." Here is the throne of God with the Father sitting in it and a great rainbow all around the throne and the Sea of Glass that it sits on.

Verse 4: "And around the throne were twenty-four thrones; and on the thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white garments; and they had on their heads golden crowns. And proceeding from the thronewere lightnings and thunders and voices; and seven lamps of fire, which are the seven spirits of God, were burning before the throne" (vs 4-5). Here is Jesus coming closer and closer.

Verse 6: "And before the throne was a sea of glass, like crystal. And around the throne and over the throne were four living creatures, full of eyes before and behind… [this is what Isaiah saw with the Seraphim] …and the first living creature was like a lion, and the second living creature was like a bull, and the third living creature had the face of a man, and the fourth living creature was like a flying eagle. And each of the four living creatures had six wings respectively… [that's what Isaiah saw, six wings] …and around and within they were full of eyes; and day and night they cease not saying, 'Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty…'" (vs 6-8).

It doesn't mean that they did this repeatedly without stopping. There were certain times when this occurred, because as we will see when it occurred the 24 elders bowed down and worshiped. This was at certain set times that this was done.

"'…Lord God Almighty, Who was… [referring to Christ] …and Who is, and Who is to come.' And when the living creatures give glory and honor… [so it wasn't continuously] …and thanksgiving to Him Who sits on the throne, Who lives into the ages of eternity, The twenty-four elders fall down before Him Who sits on the throne; and they worship Him Who lives into the ages of eternity, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying, 'Worthy are You, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power because You did create all things, and for Your will they were created and exist'" (vs 8-11).

Everything that there is, is by the will of God for His great plan for all of humanity. Christ is going to be the One Who is going to execute this plan all into the future. So, this Wave Sheaf Offering Day, when Christ ascended into heaven, is what He saw. This is Whom He met, and He came to God the Father and presented Himself.

There must have been some portion of blood left in Christ that He took with Him when He ascended into heaven so that the Holy place could be sanctified with His blood in heaven above, so that He would be the propitiation for our sins, and that the blood of Jesus Christ can cover the sins of all mankind, for those who repent.

Rev. 5 also tells us something else. Not only is He there with God the Father, but Christ is there to carry out the will of the Father from heaven, to complete the plan of God.

Revelation 5:1: "And in the right hand of Him Who sits on the throne I saw a book… [the rest of the book of Revelation] … written within and on the back, which had been sealed with seven seals."

Now a key important thing: Nothing is going to be understood without Christ revealing it! Remember that! Whatever we understand in the Bible it's because of what God has written through the Spirit of God. Whatever understanding that we have of the prophecies it's because God reveals it, therefore, we must be very careful in interpreting prophecies, that we interpret them correctly according to the will of God.

Verse 2: "And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, 'Who is worthy to open the book and to loose its seals?' But no one in heaven, or on the earth, or under the earth was able to open the book, or to look inside it. And I was weeping greatly because no one was found worthy to open and to read the book, or to look into it. Then one of the elders said to me, 'Do not weep. Behold, the Lion Who is of the tribe of Judah [Christ], the Root of David, has overcome to open the book, and to loose its seven seals.' Then I saw, and behold, before the throne and the four living creatures, and before the elders, was standing a Lamb…" (vs 2-6). We have the two aspects of Christ:

• the Lamb as Savior
• the warrior of Judah

David was a man of war. That's why Christ is coming as conquering King.

Here it is the Lamb, "…ashaving been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God that are sent into all the earth" (v 6). {Note sermons: Spirit of God/Spirit of Man—Seven Spirits of God #s1-2}

Verse 7: "And He came and took the book out of the right hand of Him Who sits on the throne… [of the Father] …And when He took the book, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each having harps and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints" (vs 7-8). Our prayers come right up before God the Father.

Verse 9: "And they sang a new song, saying…" This is a new song for the saints that they are going to sing this song when they are resurrected. This is what we will sing when we come before God the Father:

"…'Worthy are You to take the book, and to open its seals because You were slain, and did redeem us to God by Your own blood… [not the elders, the saints] …out of every tribe and language and people and nation, and did make us unto our God kings and priests; and we shall reign on the earth'" (vs 9-10). The first thing we are going to know when we are resurrected is what God has in store for us to be ruling and reigning with Christ as kings and priests.

Then he saw a great and spectacular thing. Remember, the angels were rejoicing in the gates opening and Christ walking in to come down to God the Father.

Verse 11: "And I saw and I heard the voices of many angels around the throne…" Just picture this: here's the throne of God:

• twenty-four elders
• Christ standing right there at the right hand of God
• the rainbow around the throne and a vast sea of glass

All on the sides of that a tremendous chorus of angels going all around behind the throne, and on this side of the throne. All around the throne were the voices of many angels around the throne.

"…and the voices of the living creatures and the elders, and thousands of thousands…" (v 11). Great and marvelous was this Wave Sheaf Offering Day and the ascension of Jesus Christ.

Verse 12: "Saying with a loud voice, 'Worthy is the Lamb Who was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory and blessing.'" Listen to The Messiah by Handel; great and fantastic is this song; this finishes off the whole Messiah—the reception of Jesus Christ at the throne of God. "…'Worthy is the Lamb Who was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honor, and glory and blessing.'"

The whole creation is going to rejoice! And we are going to join Christ there at the first resurrection and we are going to be given the things that God wants to give us to rule and reign with Christ. Just as Christ came and received this great blessing, we will be resurrected and the angels will rejoice. The angels will carry us up to the throne of God to the Sea of Glass and we will sing praises to God:

• we will see Jesus Christ
• we will see the 24 elders
• we will see the four living creatures
• we will see the thousands and thousands and thousands of angels

And we will look back on the earth just like it was here:

Verse 13: "And every creature that is in heaven, and on the earth, and under the earth, and those that are on the sea, and all the things in them, I heard saying, 'To Him Who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing, and honor, and glory, and sovereignty into the ages of eternity.'" Fantastic thing!

This is what happened on the Wave Sheaf Offering Day! The reception of Jesus Christ by God the Father as the perfect sacrifice for the sins of all mankind! The Creator had died but was resurrected back to save His creation. Later in that day He came back to the earth and appeared to the apostles and so forth. You can read of that in AHarmony of the Gospels, or in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.

Verse 14: "And the four living creatures said, 'Amen.'…." That part of the plan of God with the ascension of Jesus Christ to the throne of God to carry on the work of the Church from then on was finished.

"…And the twenty-four elders fell down and worshiped Him Who lives into the ages of eternity" (v 14).

This is the fulfillment of the Wave Sheaf Offering Day, and this is the meaning of Rev. 4 & 5!

All Scripture from The Holy Bible in Its Original Order, A Faithful Version by Fred R. Coulter
Scriptural References

• Leviticus 23:9-11
• 1 Corinthians 15:20-23
• Colossians 1:14-19
• Revelation 1:4-6, 17-18, 12-17
• Exodus 33:17-23
• Exodus 34:5-7
• Isaiah 6:1-10
• Matthew 17:1-9
• 2 Peter 1:14-21
• John 20:1-2
• Luke 24:1-10
• Mark 16:2-7
• John 20:3-9
• Psalm 16:8-11
• Psalm 23:1-6
• Psalm 108: 1-7
• Psalm 63:1-3
• John 20:10-17
• Psalm 24:1-5, 7-10
• Revelation 4:1-11
• Revelation 5:1-14

Scriptures referenced, not quoted:

• Hebrews 1:2
• Matthew 13
• Psalm 22

Also referenced:

Books:

• AHarmony of the Gospels by Fred R. Coulter
• God's Plan for Mankind Revealed by His Sabbath and Holy Days by Fred R. Coulter

Sermons: Spirit of God/Spirit of Man—Seven Spirits of God #s1-2

FRC:cis
Transcribed: 03/20/2006
Reformatted: bo—3/2014