Bible Text: Leviticus 23 | Preacher: Rev. Dr. Lou Saldiveri | Series: Sunday Morning Worship

— Pastor Lou’s Notes —
Intro: Hopefully, you know what day and year you were born. I am sure you know your spouse’s and kid’s birthdays. It is interesting when young couples share stories about the miracle birth of their children. Usually birthdays are celebrated annually. These celebrations are good. People’s lives should be celebrated and affirmed.

Do we know when and how and why the church was born and its purpose? The gift of life is a gift from God. The Bible says that without Christ, life here would cease. The birth of the church is an incredible and miraculous gift from God. Any gift is only a blessing when it is received by faith. The full benefits of a gift could only be enjoyed when we take part in it.

I believer there are many misunderstandings about church in our modern culture. I also believe that perhaps, some in the church may lose the sense of sacredness in the church. There is a funny illustration from the eyes and ears of a child that can give us some insight. “A little boy was taken to a new church which had long services, both morning and evening. On his third Sunday the boy noticed on the annex wall a list of names of those who lost their lives in World War II. The father explained, ‘They are the names of men and women who died in the service. The boy asked, “Which one, morning or evening?”‘ Vance Havner

1. Remember and Celebrate the Birth of the Church v. 15-21

1. The context

1. This was celebrated 7 weeks plus one day after the wave offering e.g. the first fruits.
2. This was also celebrated on a Sunday
3. This celebration was called the day of Pentecost which means 50th
4. Jews from all countries would gather to celebrate Pentecost
5. This feast celebrated God’s provision of the wheat harvest
2. The details

1. The offerings included a burnt offering (dedication), a kid of the goats for sin offering (atonement), 2 lambs for a peace offering (reconciliation and fellowship)

1. All these sacrifices and offerings were fulfilled in Christ’s one time sacrifice on the cross.
2. The two loaves on v. 17 probably points ahead to the birth of the church (Acts 2)

1. One loaf symbolizes the Jews, the other loaf symbolizes the Gentiles e.g. the birth of the church revealed the mystery of the gospel
2. They were leavened which symbolized that the Jews and the Gentiles were sinful people in need of God’s grace through Jesus Christ

1. ” The church is not a gallery for the exhibition of eminent Christians, but a school for the education of imperfect ones.” Henry Ward Beecher
3. The church was born out of a prayer meeting fifty days after Christ’s resurrection

1. This coincided with the Jewish feast of Pentecost
2. The connection between the O.T. and N.T.

1. Pentecost became know as the harvest of the Holy Spirit
2. Peter preached and the Holy Spirit translated. 3000 people put their faith in Christ and the Holy Spirit indwelled them and the church was born!
3. Prayer, Scripture, fellowship, evangelism became a lifestyle e.g. more were added to their fellowship every day
4. The church is sacred in the heart of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit

1. “24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Heb 10:24–25.
2. It has been well said that, “Your church is like a local bank: the more your put into it, the greater your interest.
2. We Need to Celebrate and Look Forward to Christ’s Second Coming v. 23-25

1. When God uses the number 7, it is symbolic that God’s work is complete and nothing need to be added e.g this feast took please on the first day of the 7th month
2. Numbers 10: 1-10 indicates:

1. Trumpets in biblical times were used to summon people together and make great announcements or to announce war
2. Trumpets were also used to announce the entrance of a king
3. Now, the sounding of these trumpets ushers in the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah

1. A time of prayer, confession, meditation, and a new beginning by God’s grace
2. In the last days, God will sound the trumpet to gather all the Jews together from other nations
4. For the church:

1. Church bells calls God’s people to gather for worship
2. Trumpets will sound when the Lord Jesus returns again as the King of kings and lord of lords
3. Some saint will have died, others will be alive and scattered throughout the earth. Jesus will gather them 2 Thess. 2:1.
3. Remember and Celebrate God’s Grace and Forgiveness v. 20-32 Part 4
4. Know the Joy of the Lord v. 33-44

Closing: Part 3
Jesus and the apostles all stress the importance of church. Is it fair to say that if they emphasized the importance of the church, that we should take that serious? Church is and ougth to be sacred. The writer of the Book of Hebrews says it this was, “24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”
The New International Version (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2011), Heb 10:24–25.

Church is still sacred and relevant for today! So, are we willing the remember and celebrate Pentecost, the birth and importance of the church? Are we willing in give of our time, gifts and talents, and treasure to the ministry of the local church?