Bible Study: Firstfruits of the Lord

Jesus is Alive! And We Will Live Too!

Autumn is harvest season for most of us, but harvesting in the land of Israel occurred throughout the year. Israel’s seven major crops included barley, wheat, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives and dates. Of those sown in the winter months, barely was the first grain to ripen in the early spring. Harvesters began gathering wheat in early summer, and the fruit harvest took place in the fall.

The three major pilgrimage feasts—Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles were agricultural festivals designed by God so his people could give thanks, make special sacrifices, and celebrate their seasonal harvests. There are a total of seven feasts outlined in Leviticus; four in the spring and three in the autumn. Each one is ripe with prophetic meaning, foretelling the story of God’s glorious plan for redemption through his Son, Jesus Christ.

First Things & Last Things

Thanks to mega best-sellers such as the Left Behind series, most of us are familiar with the study of last things
(or eschatology) foretold through the fall cycle of Jewish festivals. The Feasts of Trumpets, Yom Kippur, and Tabernacles reveal some of the details concerning God’s plan for a great end-time harvest of resurrected believers. Events foretold by these feasts include the Second Coming of Christ, the Rapture of the Church, and the Millennium.

Less understood is the meaning of first things spoken of through the spring cycle of Levitical feasts. Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, and Pentecost all pointed to the First Coming of Christ—events that for us, are now in the past. Christ’s crucifixion, burial, resurrection, and Spirit baptism initiated God’s plan for his final resurrection harvest at the end of the age.

Like the single barley sheaf waved by a priest before the Lord, Christ’s resurrection on the Feast of Firstfruits is a pledge or guarantee that a much larger harvest of resurrected souls will be realized at the end of history.

Seven Ways Jesus Christ is the Pre-eminent One

“The nation of Israel was familiar with the concept of the firstfruits, or the firstborn. Both taught the same truth. The firstfruits were always the choicest, the foremost, the first, the best, the pre-eminent of all that was to follow. The firstfruits were holy to the Lord. The same truths were also applicable to the firstborn of both man and beast.

Thus the firstfruits belonged exclusively to Jehovah. They were holy, sanctified and presented to Him. The New Testament shows beautifully how the Lord Jesus is the fulfillment of all that truth symbolized in the firstfruits and especially as the Sheaf of firstfruits.”—Kevin J. Conner

1. He is the firstborn of Mary (Matt 1:23-25).
2. He is the first-begotten of the Father (Heb 1:6).
3. He is the firstborn from the dead (Col 1:18).
4. In all things He is the pre-eminent One (Col 1:18).
5. He is the Ruler of the creation of God (Rev 3:14).
6. He is the firstborn among many brethren (Rom 8:29).
7. He is the firstfruits of the resurrected ones (I Cor 15:20-23).

For further study, I highly recommend The Feasts of the Lord by Howard and Rosenthal and The Feasts of Israel by Kevin J. Conner.

Related: Book Review: Heaven by Randy Alcorn. Visit Courtney's Women of the Word Wednesdays for more great Bible inspiration.

Photos: delayed gratification & karen horton (Flickr)



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What do you know about first things as a theme in Scripture?