"But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep." (1 Corinthians 15:20)
The day Jesus rose from the dead was the day of a great festival at the Temple in Jerusalem. It was the "Feast of Firstfruits." The Lord prescribed this festival for the people of Israel in Leviticus chapter 23:
"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. (Leviticus 23:10-11)
Holy Bible (NIV)
Leviticus 23: 10-11.
On the dav after the Sabbath, the day that Jesus rose from the dead, the Temple priests were busy waving the firstfruits of the barley harvest before the Lord. Only, what they didn't realize was that a few hours earlier, the Messiah, the Lord Himself, God in the flesh, had fulfilled this festival and all other festivals, prophecies, and Laws in His death and resurrection.
Holy Bible (NIV)
Deuteronomy 6: 11.
In the Old Testament, the prescribed firstfruits offering at the Temple was tied to the Lord's deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt. It was done in remembrance of how God had delivered them from the hand of Pharoah by leading them through the Red Sea, the wilderness, and finally into a land flowing with milk and honey. It was a recognition of the fact that they had been redeemed by God's gracious action alone and were completely dependent upon Him for their very lives. It was also a recognition that the land they were now entering contained enumerable blessings which they had not earned for themselves. "Cisterns that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive trees that you did not plant" (Deuteronomy 6:11). The Israelites were to remember that all they had was a gift from the hand of the Lord. This is why God commanded them to offer the firstfruits of their harvest at the Temple. They were also to see from this Festival that just as they depended on the Lord to provide the first of the harvest, so too must they depend on Him to bring in the rest of the harvest. The culmination of this harvest time was 50 days later, on the Feast of Pentecost.
Holy Bible (NIV)
Psalm 24
Every human being owes their whole life to God. He created all things and He sustains all things. He gives us air to breathe and food to eat. He gives us hands and feet, reason, strength, and everything we require to do our work. Everything is truly a gift from Him. We have earned nothing. Really, if we were to keep the Law of God perfectly, we would need to dedicate everything, down to our last breath, to God. For all things belong to Him (Psalm 24). We would also need to depend entirely on Him for every aspect of our lives.
Holy Bible (NIV)
John 19: 30
This is exactly what Jesus did. And, He did it on our behalf, as our substitute. He depended upon God in every aspect of His life. And, on the Cross, He offered Himself up as a sacrifice to His heavenly Father. Christ's whole life was a living sacrifice to God, but the Cross was the apex. On the Cross, Jesus cried out, "It is finished!" (John 19:30). The sacrifice was complete. Jesus gave to God what all people owe God but are unable to give Him;
Perfect faith toward God, perfect love toward neighbor. God Himself gave the Law intending to fulfill it Himself in Jesus, His Son. God gave the firstfruits of Himself, His very own eternally begotten Son for the life of the world. And, His Son offered this fruit back to the Father in perfect obedience, all for our sake - to present us holy and blameless before God. To make His Father our Father.
Because Jesus' offering and sacrifice was perfect and pure, the Father raised Him from the dead. Jesus' Resurrection was the Father's answer to His Son's cry, "It is finished." In the Resurrection, the Father exclaimed, "it is finished, indeed!" In our crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ, we are reconstituted, remade, and restored. In Him, our whole life has been given back to God in perfect faith and obedience - His obedience is credited to our account purely by grace. His righteousness is credited to us, so that our Father beams with pleasure in us - the same pleasure He has in His Son. He declares to each one of us: "You are my beloved son, with you I am well pleased." And, all because of Jesus!
Holy Bible (NIV)
Romans 6
What Paul is getting at, is that Jesus, our great High Priest, rose from the dead and "waved" us before the Father. We are the fruits of Christ's labor. We are the harvest of His saving work. The effect is, in God's eyes, it's as if we ourselves did what Jesus did. Not that we actually did it, but because we are united to Christ in His death and Resurrection through Baptism (Romans 6) it is credited to our account. In Him, we are fully accepted by God.
Now, we have a sure and certain confidence because Christ has fully redeemed us and delivered us from sin, death, and the power of the Devil. Jesus' righteousness is now ours. We have nothing left to fear. Nothing can separate us from Him. For death itself has been swallowed up in victory. The grave cannot hold us, for it could not hold our Lord. Just as certainly as He was raised from the dead, never to die again, so shall we be raised from the dead and given eternal life when He comes again in glory.
This is what motivates us to give of ourselves in service each day. Not because we have to in order to receive blessings, but because we get to in grateful response to the eternal blessings that are already ours in Christ Jesus, our Risen Lord and Savior.
May our Risen Lord Jesus Christ bless you this Easter and always,
