The Feast of Firstfruits, associated with the wave sheaf day, marks the beginning of the harvest and initiates the seven-week count to Pentecost, which concludes both the count and the harvest. Both occasions center on the concept of firstfruits, with the wave sheaf offering representing the initial barley harvest and Pentecost featuring two wave loaves made of fine wheat flour, presented as firstfruits to the Lord. The wave sheaf day, though occurring during the environs of Unleavened Bread, holds a stronger connection to Pentecost through these shared themes. Scripture highlights Jesus Christ as the first of the firstfruits, the initiator of God's spiritual harvest, being the firstborn from the dead. This designation implies that others will follow as firstfruits to the Lord, linked to the broader harvest of God's elect. On the wave sheaf day, Christ stands as the chronological firstfruit, the beginning of the spiritual harvest, while on Pentecost, He is the model firstfruit, the standard of excellence that the elect must emulate. The two wave loaves at Pentecost, baked with leaven symbolizing corruption, contrast with Christ's sinless nature, underscoring His preeminence both in time and quality. Thus, Christ remains the central focus of these feasts, guiding and exemplifying the path for those who aspire to be firstfruits in God's Kingdom.

The Feast of Firstfruits is mentioned in Leviticus 23:17, where it states, "You shall bring from your dwellings two wave loaves of two-tenths of an ephah. They shall be of fine flour: they shall be baked with leaven. They are the firstfruits to the LORD." This festival is also known as the Feast of Firstfruits due to this offering. The Hebrew word for firstfruits in this verse is bikkurim, which refers to the first of the crops and fruit that ripened. At the time of the cutting of the Wavesheaf offering, the count to Pentecost begins. On the fiftieth day, the rest of the firstfruits are offered for acceptance before God in the form of two wave loaves of fine flour baked with leaven.

In the Old Testament, the Feast of Firstfruits, known as the day of the wavesheaf, marked the beginning of the grain harvest when the firstfruits of the barley were offered before the Lord. This feast initiated a process that culminated in a larger harvest, symbolizing an early gathering of God's children. The agricultural imagery of reaping grain parallels the spiritual harvest, raising questions about how this harvest of firstfruits is conducted and whether it has already begun. As Christ noted, the fields are already white for harvest, indicating the readiness of the crop at a transitional stage for cutting, much like the early harvest of His church. This harvest, distinct and special, focuses on those who are ripe and ready to be reaped by Him.

The Feast of Pentecost is a harvest festival that pictures the spiritual harvest and acceptance of God's firstfruits. These firstfruits are those who comprise the Bride of Christ, the 144,000, and include the faithful from both the Old and New Testaments. The entire period from the offering of the firstfruits during the Days of Unleavened Bread to the Day of Pentecost revolves around these firstfruits. It starts with the first fruit, Jesus Christ, and ends with the firstfruits of the two covenants represented by the two wave loaves offered on Pentecost. These loaves, made with leaven and baked, symbolize the firstfruits being prepared and accepted by God. The process of preparing these loaves, from grinding and kneading to baking, illustrates the trials and transformation that firstfruits undergo to be made acceptable to God. The term "firstfruits" refers to those who are first in honor and order, called to be superior and excellent among God's spiritual children, sharing the honor of primogeniture with Christ.

There has been a subtle doctrinal shift in how the Church of God counts to Pentecost, like the cultural rebranding which switched the political colors of the two major political parties during the 2000 U.S. election. Leviticus 23 commands God's people to count to Pentecost "from the morrow after the Sabbath" culminating on the day after the after the seventh Sabbath. Historically, God's Church followed the Sadducean practice anchoring the count to the weekly Sabbath during Unleavened Bread, with the Days of Unleavened Bread, even if the offering occurred on a holy day or a high Sabbath. In 1974, the church surreptitiously aligned itself with the Karaite practice of always putting Wavesheaf day within Unleavened Bread. Proponents tried to link Christ's resurrection with Unleavened Bread, at the cost of overriding clear, well-established, biblical commands. Unlike the change of observing Pentecost from Monday to Sunday, this additional subtle change was never explained publicly. Herbert W. Armstrong never publicly spoke or wrote about this second change. God's called-out saints must return to the original method for 1.) Scriptural integrity-the Sabbath refers to a weekly Sabbath rather than a high day. 2.) Historical and Theological Consistency-The Sadducees, who controlled the Temple at this time, used this method. 3.) Practical Faithfulness-the Wave Sheaf signals a task reserved for a workday rather than a Holy Sabbath. 4.) Guarding against doctrinal drift—just as slight changes in tradition can obscure core truths, such as Sunday worship replacing God's Sabbath, and adding requirements not found in Scripture, risks the danger of making the commands of Almighty God "of no effect." The count to Pentecost in 2025 and every year thereafter, must begin on the Sunday after the weekly Sabbath during Unleavened Bread.

The Feast of Firstfruits is mentioned in the context of the Pentecost offering, where the two leavened loaves are specifically identified as firstfruits. These loaves are part of a grain offering, made from the first part of the wheat harvest. The concept of firstfruits is not limited to this offering; it applies to various crops, each having an early sample that God claims as His. Metaphorically, firstfruits can represent different things, such as the spiritual creation, the redeemed in Revelation, and Jesus Christ as the firstfruits of those resurrected. The apostles received the firstfruits of the Spirit, which allowed God to be glorified on Pentecost. The presence of firstfruits indicates that a harvest has started, not that it is complete. In the New Testament, firstfruits are also mentioned in the present tense, indicating an ongoing spiritual harvest. The household of Stephanas and Epaenetus are examples of firstfruits in the early church, showing that the harvest symbolism began during Christ's ministry and continues today.