The Significance of the First Fruit
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Point: Because Christ has been resurrected from the dead, we will be included as the resurrected of the dead.
But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the 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 firstfruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For “God has put all things in subjection under his feet.” But when it says, “all things are put in subjection,” it is plain that he is excepted who put all things in subjection under him.
When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things in subjection under him, that God may be all in all.
Otherwise, what do people mean by being baptized on behalf of the dead? If the dead are not raised at all, why are people baptized on their behalf?
A. Christ is the first fruits of all the dead under whom all become subject to.
Death came by the man Adam, who died. Life comes through the man Jesus, who died and rose. Adam is the geneological great, great, great grandfather to us all. “In him” was sin and death introduced. “In him”, within, included, united with him, connected to was sin and death. From Adam came all life, therefore, through Adam all have sin and taste death because of Adam’s sin before God. Therefore, by geneology, in us does sin and death reside and have hold. Therefore the need for redemption, rightness with God.
Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned—
“In Christ”, however, being united to, included, within, connected, we now have the nature of Christ that is sinless and divine, in Christ, because of Christ. 2 Cor 5:21
For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
“In Christ” we have a resurrected nature, because Christ has a resurrected nature, the first fruit from death.
and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,
But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.
Citizenship in heaven is only for those that are “in Christ”. Have you believed upon and received the Lord Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? John 3:16
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
So…in Christ we have life, in Adam we have death. Because Jesus died and rose we have life. This is the celebration of First Fruits.
First Fruits refers to the harvest of a farmer’s first crop. It was to be given to the LORD God as an offering of thanksgiving. It was also an offering given to assure God’s blessing upon the rest of the harvest.
First Fruits also was the third of the Spring Feasts that God’s people were to/are to celebrate (Lev. 23:6-8) with the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day you shall have a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work. But you shall present a food offering to the Lord for seven days. On the seventh day is a holy convocation; you shall not do any ordinary work.”
These two feasts followed very closely the The Feast of Passover, upon which the Israelites would celebrate and remember as the day that the angel of death passed over their homes in Egypt, and spared their first born, if they had slaughtered the Passover Lamb and put the blood on the door frames of their homes. The Passover also signifies the day that Israel was let go out of bondage of Egypt, the 14th day of Nissan. Forever, God’s people are to celebrate God’s Passover Feast on the 14th day of Nissan. The day of Passover is the day when Jesus died, the 14th day of Nissan. During the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the priest would present a wave offering of the sheaf of first fruits over the harvest. It was an offering and sign to the Lord God that the entire harvest belonged to Him and would be accepted and blessed.
And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the people of Israel and say to them, When you come into the land that I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest to the priest, and he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, so that you may be accepted. On the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it.
What is the blessing of the harvest of first fruits? Jesus was resurrected on this day! Meaning that His sacrifice received and accepted by God the Father on His creations behalf. The sin that man was guilty of because of the first Adam, was paid and accepted by the sacrifice of the Last Adam, Jesus Christ. The first Adam brought sin and death into the world by his disobedience, the second Adam, the last Adam, Jesus Christ, brings righteousness and life because He obeyed His Father and gave His life, His blood, for forgiveness of man’s sins. The fact that Jesus is the first fruits from the dead guarantees, is the seal of our assurance of resurrection from the dead in the future, of all disciples of Christ to eternal life.
If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.
And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies.
If you have believed upon and received the grace of Jesus Christ, you have the Holy Spirit within you. Holy Spirit is the guarantee of our being raised from the dead at the return of Christ. Our souls are sealed with Christ, and our bodies will be raised glorified at the return of Christ. We will be part of that great harvest at the end of days. Why the Holy Spirit? Because Holy Spirit was sent by Christ, to live within each who would believe upon, receive, obey, and follow the LORD Jesus as Messiah and Savior of the world (John 14:15-27).
“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever,
even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.
In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
And it is God who establishes us with you in Christ, and has anointed us, and who has also put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.
To the believer and follower of Christ death is only “sleep” for our physical bodies.
For we know that if the tent that is our earthly home is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For in this tent we groan, longing to put on our heavenly dwelling,
if indeed by putting it on we may not be found naked. For while we are still in this tent, we groan, being burdened—not that we would be unclothed, but that we would be further clothed, so that what is mortal may be swallowed up by life.
He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee. So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord,
for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord.
For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me. Yet which I shall choose I cannot tell. I am hard pressed between the two. My desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better.
A further significance of the Feast of Unleavened Bread was the fact that bread was to be baked without leaven, no yeast. Leaven represented sin. In preparation for this feast, the people were to clean their houses of any leaven, any yeast, to prepare for their offering to be received, and rememberance to leave Egypt behind. Jesus prepared Himself and was sinless before the cross when He was crucified. That fact we know is true because He rose the third day, on the day of First Fruits, Nissan 17. His sacrifice was accepted as the sinless, spotless Passover Lamb, and His resurrection now made the way for our future resurrection to life, of all who proclaim Jesus and Savior and Lord.
For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.
and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood
Why is Jesus’ resurrection of First Fruits so significant?
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice was received and accepted by the Father, or else Jesus would not have risen.
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice was holy, and sinless, or else Jesus would not have risen.
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice was sufficient, or else Jesus would not have risen.
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice finished the job, or else Jesus would not have risen.
Why did Jesus come to be among His creation in the first place? Why did Jesus say that He had come?
Jesus came to fulfill the Law and Prophets, the Scriptures (prophecy) (Mt. 5:17-20) - the requirement of the Law and Prophets upon men; pay for sin and iniquity; live a holy life unto God. Fulfill the Feast of Passover, Unleavened Bread and First Fruits. Give a light in the darkess with the Holy Spirit and the Feast of Pentecost and Weeks. And future fulfillment of the Feast of Tabernacles - Feast of Trumpets, Atonement, and Tabernacles.
Jesus came to seek and to save the lost - those without God (Luke 19:10) - salvation for man from being seperated from God by sin and death.
For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”
Jesus came to serve, not to be served, to give His life for others (Mt 20:27-28)
even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Jesus came to do the will of His Father (John 6:38-40) - to lose none of His creation to sin and eternal death and damnation, and instead be resurrected to life everlasting in the Kingdom of God.
For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me. And this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.
For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
Being asked by the Pharisees when the kingdom of God would come, he answered them, “The kingdom of God is not coming in ways that can be observed, nor will they say, ‘Look, here it is!’ or ‘There!’ for behold, the kingdom of God is in the midst of you.”
Jesus came to do His Father’s work (John 5:17; John 4:34)
Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to accomplish his work.
But Jesus answered them, “My Father is working until now, and I am working.”
Why is Jesus’ resurrection of First Fruits so significant?
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice was received and accepted by the Father, or else Jesus would not have risen.
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice was holy, and sinless, or else Jesus would not have risen.
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice was sufficient, or else Jesus would not have risen.
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice finished the job, or else Jesus would not have risen.
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice saves man from sin and death, or else Jesus would not have risen.
For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.”
Jesus’ offering and sacrifice makes everything subject to Him. 1 Cor 15:25
For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet.
1 Corinthians 15:27 (ESV)
For “God has put all things in subjection under his feet.”
The significance of the first fruit is that because Christ has been resurrected from the dead, we will be included in the resurrected from the dead.