Firstfruits

The firstfruit is holy…Romans 11:16. 

The offering of firstfruits was always on the first day of the week. Exodus 23:11: on the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it. The priest was to wave the first fruit of the harvest before the LORD. God established the day of the resurrection of Jesus from the beginning. He established a feast to prepare His people for this wonderful day.

The firstfruits is our risen Lord Jesus. Jesus rose from the grave on the first day of the week, Matthew 28:1. Jesus is the firstfruits of the resurrection, 1 Corinthians 15:20-23.

The feast of firstfruits takes place in the week of Passover and Unleavened Bread. Firstfruits is the celebration of the harvest. It is the offering of the first of the harvest in gratitude for all God’s provision during planting and harvest. It is the acknowledgment that the land belongs to God, the seed belongs to God and the rain is provided by God. All belong to God. Including us.

The celebration of firstfruits is prophetic. It points to the resurrection of Jesus our Lord, the Christ. It points to the power of God to overcome the penalty of sin—death. It points to our resurrection, for Jesus is the firstfruit of the resurrection. 

Think of it, as the priest was offering the wave offering of the first fruit of the harvest in the temple, Jesus was offering Himself as the first fruit of the resurrection to God the Father. Think of this: God has offered us a two-fold blessing. First, to join Jesus in the resurrection from the dead. Second, to join Jesus in offering eternal life to those dead in their sins.