The word Pentecost means fiftieth in Greek, indicating the process of counting fifty days. This counting is a vital part of the day of Pentecost, as God instructs us to count either seven weeks or fifty days, both methods leading to the same day. The significance of counting fifty days is tied to the idea of measuring time, which symbolizes evaluation and judgment. The fifty days from the Wavesheaf day to Pentecost represent the time of our conversion, from coming out of the world until the time of harvest, symbolizing our spiritual growth and preparation for salvation. This period of fifty days underscores the finite nature of our time for conversion, reminding us that our day of salvation is limited.

The Feast of Pentecost is unique among the holy days because it requires counting either seven weeks or fifty days from a particular day, a weekly Sabbath, rather than being assigned a fixed date like the other holy days. This count always concludes on a Sunday, the day after the seventh Sabbath. The term Pentecost, meaning "fiftieth" in Greek, directly relates to this count of fifty days as instructed in Leviticus 23:15 and 16. This period of fifty days begins around the time of Passover and the Days of Unleavened Bread, symbolizing a time of redemption and the process of putting away sin and putting on righteousness, culminating in Pentecost, which represents the harvest of the firstfruits. This fifty-day period is analogous to the time of conversion, likened to the approximate fifty years of adult life from age twenty to seventy, as discussed in the context of Numbers 1:1-3 and Psalm 90:10.

The period from the wavesheaf to Pentecost lasts fifty days. This time is dedicated to the theme of the harvest of the firstfruits and God's role in it. It begins with the waving of the sheaf of firstfruit barley, representing Christ, and concludes with the waving of two loaves of leavened bread, symbolizing God's acceptance of His people into His Kingdom. During these fifty days, the emphasis is on the work that God's people must do, both externally in their fields and internally in their dwellings, to produce godly character and growth. This period pictures intense labor of sowing and reaping, with the goal of being offered before God as an acceptable offering.

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.