Where is it mentioned?
Leviticus 23:15-16 - From the day after the Sabbath, the day you brought he sheaf of the wave offering, count off seven full weeks. Count off fifty days up to the day after the seventh Sabbath, and then present an offering of new grain to the LORD.
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Deuteronomy 16:9 - You are to count seven weeks, counting the weeks from the time the sickle is first put to the standing grain.
What does it look like?
Many Jews begin the counting of the omer on the second night of Passover, at their second Seder, with the reading of the traditional blessing:
Blessed art thou, O LORD our God, King of the universe, who has set us apart by Your commandments and has commanded us concerning the counting of the sheaf.
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This blessing is read every evening for the next forty-nine days with an adjustment made according to the number of days that have been counted. For example:
Today is the first day of the sheaf.
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The next day would be the second day, then the third, and so on until the forty-ninth day is reached. In essence then, Sfirat HaOmer is not a countdown but a countup in anticipation of the next great work of God at Shavuot. Some people even make use of a special calendar which helps keep track of the appropriate day.
In practical terms, a celebration of First Fruits under the reign of Messiah should be no problem incorporating Jewish cultural traditions into their observance. The blessings are as follows:
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Barukh atah Adonai Elohenu melekh ha-olam, asher kidshanu b'mitzvohtav l'hayot or l'goyeem v'natan-lanu Yeshua m'sheekhaynu ha-or la-olam.
Blessed art Thou, O LORD our God, King of the universe, Who has sanctified us by His commandments and commanded us to be a light unto the nations and has given us Yeshua our Messiah, the light of the world.
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Barukh atah Adonai Elohenu melekh ha-olam, boran p'ree ha-gahfen.
Blessed art Thou, O LORD our God, King of the universe, who creates the fruit of the vine.
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Barukh atah Adonai Elohenu melekh ha-olam, ha-motzee lekhem meen ha-aretz.
Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe, who brings forth bread from the earth.
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You may want to say these blessings over sheaves of barley or a cup of grain, lifting them up to illustrate the truth of this holy day. An appropriate time to recount these blessings is just before the holiday dinner.
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Hopefully you are within driving distance of a messianic fellowship and are able to celebrate the holy day in a larger body of believers. The same message of Easter Sunday is celebrated through the Jewish feast. Once it is understood, the typology of First Fruits will be appreciated by many. It points to resurrection.
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In addition to the traditional blessings over the omer, other elements of a messianic First Fruits service might include worship music and a scriptural message regarding the centrality of resurrection to our faith in Yeshua. He is risen indeed!
Why should I care?
The holiday is mentioned in the New Testament a number of times and my personal conviction is that it should be one of the most important festivals for believers in Yeshua. A close reading of 1 Corinthians 15 will show the vital link of Sfirat HaOmer to the ministry of Messiah. As Rabbi Saul of Tarsus teaches the believers about the doctrine of the resurrection, he makes an amazing connection to this biblical holy day:
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But the fact is that the Messiah has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have died. For since death came through a man, also the resurrection of the dead has come through a man. For just as in connection with Adam all die, so in connection with the Messiah all will be made alive. But each in his own order: the Messiah is the first fruits; then those who belong to Messiah at the time of His coming... (1 Corinthians 15:20-23).
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Although many read this passage as a commentary on the order of the resurrection, Paul is actually making a technical reference to the holy day of Sfirat HaOmer. It is not merely that Yeshua was the first to rise bodily from the grave, but that by so doing, he is the direct fulfillment of the feast of the First Fruits! This makes perfect sense as we reflect on the details of the day. The traditional observance of this feast points us to the resurrection of Messiah. Yeshua Himself alluded to His resurrection in similar terms when He said:
The time has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Yes, indeed! I tell you that unless a grain of wheat that falls to the ground dies, it stays just a grain; but if it dies, it produces a big harvest... As for me, when I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw everyone to myself (John 12:23-24, 32).
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The resurrection of Messiah from the dead is perfectly symbolized in the wave offering of the first fruits.
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The most widely accepted traditional view says that Yeshua celebrated His last Seder with His disciples on the evening of 14 Nisan, a Thursday night that particular year. He was arrested that night and stood before the Roman authorities. He was finally placed on the execution cross at 9:00 a.m. on Friday and gave up His spirit at 3:00 p.m. that afternoon, just before the weekly Sabbath. His body was quickly buried by His sympathizers, left in the tomb through that next day until, at their earliest opportunity, the women came to the tomb to find it open.
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According to Jewish reckoning, therefore, Yeshua was in the tomb three days: part of Friday until sundown, sundown Friday to sundown Saturday, and day three starting at sundown Saturday. Although His empty tomb was discovered at daybreak Sunday morning, according to Jewish reckoning Yeshua could have been raised from the dead any time after sundown on Saturday, Personally, I wonder if God, our Father, would not take the first possible opportunity to raise His Son after Saturday sundown instead of waiting for Sunday morning!
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As we trace this chronology, we can see the sovereign hand of God in regard to the timing of Sfirat HaOmer. It was imperative for Messiah to die exactly on Passover in order to fulfill the prophecies. So too Messiah must be risen from the dead on First Fruits.
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As first place there may appear to be a problem with this since there was controversy over the dating of the holy day by the first-century rabbis. But a closer look reveals that Yeshua of Nazareth fulfilled both these interpretations in the particular year of His death and resurrection.
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Yeshua was raised on the third day of Passover (16 Nisan), which fulfilled the Pharisaic interpretation of the Torah. Amazingly, he also fulfilled the Sadducean interpretation at the same time. In the particular year of His death, Sfirat HaOmer would have started on the Sunday after Passover. Consequently, the year of Yeshua's death and resurrection was one of the few in which both rabbinical therories could be correct at the same time! Indeed, God's sovereign plan should be seen by all. Blessed be He Who has revealed the risen Messiah Yeshua, the fulfillment of Sfirat HaOmer!
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The theme of Sfirat HaOmer is resurrection, which should make believers in Messiah appreciate the importance of the holy day. However, the believers of the early church, especially the Roman Church of the fourth century, began to loose touch with the Jewish understanding of the faith. The Church wanted to maintain a celebration of the resurrection of the Messiah, but at the Council of Nicea (325 C.E.), an edict was established that Christians would not be allowed to commemorate Passover but would observe the resurrection on a new holiday called Easter. According to this Church, a "Western" Church, Easter would be observed on the Sunday after the Spring equinox. Consequently, today many Christians have forgotten the intimate connection between the resurrection and the Jewish holy days.
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It makes me wonder if it would have been simpler and clearer to continue to celebrate the great works of God at His appointed times. Is it any wonder that the Church historically has had such little awareness of its own Jewish heritage, as well as such little advancement in Jewish outreach? In these latter days, it is wonderful to see so many believers, Jews and Gentiles, desiring to understand the original context of the faith. Sfirat HaOmer can be a beautiful celebration to point to the risen savior of the world, Yeshua HaMashiach!